During my
first year of seminary, I listened as a new friend described her life.
Abandoned by her husband, she was raising two small children alone. Earning
just over minimum wage, she had little chance of escaping the poverty and
dangers she described in her neighborhood.
I was
moved by her concern for her children, and asked, “How do you handle all of
this?” She seemed surprised by my question and replied, “We are doing all we
can do, and I must leave them in God’s hands.” Her trust in God in the midst of
trials reminded me of Job’s trust (1:6-22).
A year later,
she phoned and asked if I would come be with her at the funeral home. Her son
had been killed in a drive-by shooting. I asked God for words to comfort her
and for the wisdom not to try to explain the unexplainable.
Standing
with her that day, however, I marveled as again and again she comforted
others—her confidence in God unshaken by this terrible blow. Turning to me as
we parted, her final words were a poignant reminder of the depth of her faith:
“My boy is still in God’s hands.” Like Job, she “did not sin nor charge God
with wrong”(v.22).
We too can develop an unshakable faith by daily walking with the Lord.
