The Online Lodge

The story of Job is a story of a losing and a story of a winning. It is a story of sickness and a story of healing from sickness. It is a story of losing faith in someone and a story of gaining hope in God. It is a story of man’s body and mind and a story of man’s soul and spirit. It is the story of an agony and a story of an ecstasy. It is a story of love and a story of hate. It is a story of strength and a story of weakness. This is the story of Job. It is here that we can understand the meaning of Paul’s’ words when he said, “the race is not given to the swift, nor to the strong, but unto him that is able to endure unto the end.”

If you are going to live a life as a Christian and do the will of God, then I say to you today, “the race is not given to the swift, nor to the strong, but unto him that is able to endure unto the end.” It is demanded of us by the Christian faith to understand that it is not how strong you start out on the Christian road, but how strong you end up when the journey’s over. The important thing is not how long you have been climbing up the mountains or hills of life, but whether or not you make it to the top. What is imperative in the Christians’ life is not how rapidly or swiftly we start out running this race but whether we stay in the running until we cross the finish line.

Job certainly understood what it meant to encounter one problem after another. Before he could recover from one loss, he was stricken with another. He suffered the death of his children, rejection by his wife, loss of his business and property, his own health and dignity. Yet, in the midst of his pain and the maturity of his faith he was able to declare, “Man that is born of woman is of few days and full of troubles. But regardless of what happens to me in my life, all the days of my appointed time will I wait for my change to come.”

For all of you who may be experiencing great difficulties and challenges in your life right now, I encourage you to wait for your change to come. Regardless of how rough the road may be, just wait for your change.

Job did not understand what was happening to him but he was content in the Lord. He knew that problems were mounting, sorrow overshadowing and tears pain were deep. But in spite of this, he believed in God and made the decision to just wait for his change to come.

You know, so many times we think that the rains are falling and the winds are blowing against us, but God has got another plan for us. God can look a long ways down the road. He knows what is around every corner and every curve. Somehow, if we can just trust Him and wait on Him we will discover like Job, that everything will alright.

Rev. Saundra L. Washington, D.D., is an ordained clergywoman, veteran social worker, and Founder of AMEN Ministries. She is also the author of two coffee table books: Room Beneath the Snow: Poems that Preach and Negative Disturbances: Homilies that Teach which can be reviewed on her site. Her new book, Out of Deep Waters: My Grief Management Workbook, though delayed in publication, is expected to be available early 2006.

You have an open invitation to visit us at AMEN Ministries: Your Soul’s Service Station for reviewing spiritual services being offered, obtain spiritual refreshing and soul edification, get your daily dose of humor, browse our newly expanded Stop & Shop Store and to visit our prayer sanctum for quiet time with God.

Blessings to all!