Momof2sisters's Journal

I had sent portions of the message below on to one whom I have grown to admire, love a care about profiled on Daily strength... As I completed... I thought there would be so many who could possibly relate to it's contents... I thought I should share it to more in need as I and my freind :) If you are a spiritual person, Christian, or have curiositys a continued good read would be the book of "Job"... The Bible and it's scripture can be a wonderful support system if you are in need :)

God Bless

Trial does not involve only pain and suffering; benefits and pleasures may also be a trial. Some people fail the test of affliction, others fail the test of blessing, and still others fail both. People fail because they do not acknowledge their real place in the scheme of things. When they experience good, they think they deserve it. When they suffer, they think they are mistreated.

“When harm touches the human being, he calls upon Us. Then, when we confer on him a blessing, he says, ‘I was given it only because of a knowledge.’ No, it is a trial, but most of them know not (39:49).”

It is in this background that Islam’s sacred text, the Quran, talks about holy prophets who suffered in their earthly lives, sometimes at the hands of their enemies and sometimes tried by God himself. Muhammad is insulted, abused, and fought against, Jesus is crucified, and Abraham is thrown into fire, though God saves him. Lot and Noah have troubles with their wives. Other prophets are murdered by their own communities because their messages become too burdensome on the conscience of people who want to silence their voices.

However, one story of God’s test and trial that receives considerable attention in Quran and also in the Bible is the story of Job “Ayoub.” He is the prophet of patience, a model par excellence of steadfast faith in the face of painful sickness and loss of life and property. Job, a descendant of the prophet Abraham, is a wise, just, and learned man. His father possessed much property and livestock and there was none like him in the land of Syria. At the age of 30, Job married Rahma, a beautiful woman descendant of the prophet Joseph. God blessed them with twelve sons and daughters.

The devil wants to incite some of the Lord’s most sincere and pious servants to go astray. With God’s permission, the devil puts Job to the test. Job suffers first the loss of his property, then his children, and then his health. Struck with boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head, Job lives in pain and utter isolation. He is shunned by his people and becomes a burden on his wife. But Job perseveres and constantly invokes God’s mercy. “My Lord! I am suffering and you are most gracious and most merciful (21:83).”

One day Job’s prayer is answered and an angel descends on him with the good news of God’s forgiveness. A spring gushes forth beneath his feet, restoring Job’s health and beauty. Job gets his family and possessions back, and he lives a long happy life thereafter. Job, as God’ true servant, did not complain but rather saw in his suffering the test and trial. Suffering is educative. Misfortune is God’s discipline for those whom God loves. The proper response is patience and perseverance. “For those who are patient, we have for them abundant reward in store (39:10).”

In the end, suffering makes sense only in the context of Reality in total. One must not hope for perfection in an inherently imperfect world. However, it is not easy for humans to rise above the contingent nature of earthly existence. With loss of faith, a modern person may not find Job’s response to human suffering justifiable. We may be left with the poets mysterious lines concerning human misery.

I heard upon his dry dung heap
That man cry out who cannot sleep;
“If God is God He is not good,
If God is good He is not God;
Take the even, take the odd,
I would not sleep here if I could
Except for the little green leaves in the wood
And the wind on the water.”