This one first: They say 'Love is All You Need'...

So I was doing my devo last night, and the Message took me to Job. For those of you who don’t really have a solid idea of what the books is about, let me summarize…

Job was a man so entirely and passionately after the heart of God that he seemed to be in a league of his own. He walked on the path that God had planned for him and he believed and had faith in God to the point where it was one of the most intimate and connected relationships between the two that is seen in the Old Testament. Satan saw this bloke and said to God: ‘Hey. Why don’t you make this guy’s life absolutely miserable — take away every single thing he has and see if he is still so devoted to you.’

God then turned around saying ‘Nuh uh. I won’t touch him and destroy him like that! If you must see how committed this man is to having a relationship with me and knowing me and my heart himself, then you may take away his things… but you certainly can’t lay a finger on him personally. Gottit?’

So thats what Satan did. He took away Job’s wife, children, animals, house, salary, clothes, food…. literally everything. And it basically all happened within a few days. That really has to suck big time — but Job didn’t turn away from God. He had this amazing mindset going ‘God gives and God takes it back’. What a fantastic way of looking at it.

After a rather extended period of torment, Job got disheartened (though still kept strong with God!) and started to complain a little. ‘God, I don’t get why it has to be me that you test. I don’t understand seeing as I was so faithful that you took me apart and ripped me to shreds. It was my love… my wife, who meant the world to me… my children whom I raised, teaching them right from wrong… everything that I had put so much time and sweat into. God I still love you! I still want to be with you and have you control my life! But honestly, why me?!!!’

And God comes back with some of the most devastatingly beautiful phrases I have ever understood. As a writer, it makes me so stoked that God has this kinda creativity to speak these words to Job.

‘And who took charge of the ocean when it gushed forth like a baby from the womb?
That was me! I wrapped it in soft clouds, and tucked it in safely at night.
Then I made a playpen for it, a strong one so it couldn’t run loose
and said “Stay here, this is now your place. You wild tantrums are controlled here.“‘

- Job 38: 8-11, The Message

‘Can you find your way to where lightening is launched or to the place from which the wind blows?
Who do you suppose carves canyons, for the downpours of rain and charts
the route of thunderstorms that bring water to unvisited fields?
Deserts that no one ever lays eyes on, drenching the useless wastelands
so that they are carpeted with wildflowers and grass?’

- Job 38: 24-27, The Message

Honestly, it would have absolutely blown to be where Job was at… having everything obliterated from his life so that only the raw, dangling faith that he had in God remained, holding him together and alive. God was what kept this guy going because of that beautiful way of thinking: ‘God gives and God takes it back’. But when looking at it, what a strong man! To keep the faith and not absolutely faceplant from the reality of God into the lies of Satan.

And while reading those passages above, I kept coming back to the bolded bits. Thinking that the oceans, in all their huff and might were only dealing with things as small as a tantrum to God. He has his fingers worked into their day-to-day happenings that a mere tantrum is absolutely nothing to fret over.

And how about the image of God being the ultimate lightening launcher and canyon carver? When I think those through (and they were two very different ideas of Him being compared in the same passage), I get the coolest angle of God… one that is going to beat Satan to the ground so that I may continue to walk with the man who saved my skin and at the same time, the almighty hand that took bits of rock and put deep, gaping pathways into them so that water would flow through them and not pell-mell all over the place.

These two ideas are so different, yet give me such a phenomenal direction in understanding the love of God just that much more.

Yes, He loves me. I know that. Many know that, but the magnitude and strength in which He does… I don’t think we really get it.

People have written books and stories and sermons and radio shows and tv episodes all trying to proclaim this unfathomable concept… and while many understand a little concept of it, I was struck with more of this mass of love. I shall hereby add ‘blog posts’ to the long list of media that has been established to unravel this love. And I shall do so in the second part so that you don’t get bored.