“But if I go to the east, he is not there; if I go to the west, I do not find him. When he is at work in the north, I do not see him; when he turns to the south, I catch no glimpse of him. But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.
Job 23:8-10//

God is working even when I cannot see Him, and His goal is for me to be purified.

They were carried off before their time, their foundations washed away by a flood.
Job 22:16//

In the oldest book in the Bible, we still see a reference to the great flood. Scripture is consistent.

They spend their years in prosperity and go down to the grave in peace. Yet they say to God, ‘Leave us alone! We have no desire to know your ways. Who is the Almighty, that we should serve him? What would we gain by praying to him?’ But their prosperity is not in their own hands, so I stand aloof from the plans of the wicked.
Job 21:13-16//

I do not choose to worship God because of what He can give me. Rather, I choose to worship Him because I love Him.

What he toiled for he must give back uneaten; he will not enjoy the profit from his trading. For he has oppressed the poor and left them destitute; he has seized houses he did not build.
Job 20:18-19//

While his friends chastised him for being evil because he lost everything, his wealth (or lack of it) had nothing to do with Job’s righteousness.

His anger burns against me; he counts me among his enemies.
Job 19:11//

Just because I go through hard times does not mean God is against me.

Then Job replied: “How long will you torment me and crush me with words?
Job 19:1-2//

A man who lost everything and yet, his friends tell him he is evil, rather than to encourage him. As Christians, we need to lift others up; not “shoot them in the foot.”

My spirit is broken, my days are cut short, the grave awaits me. Surely mockers surround me; my eyes must dwell on their hostility.
Job 17:1-2//

Hopelessness comes when we focus solely on our worldly possessions and relationships instead of God and how He sustains us.

“I have heard many things like these; you are miserable comforters, all of you! Will your long-winded speeches never end? What ails you that you keep on arguing?
Job 16:2-3//

Sometimes it is better to sit and listen – a recurring theme in the book of Job.

Your sin prompts your mouth; you adopt the tongue of the crafty. Your own mouth condemns you, not mine; your own lips testify against you.
Job 15:5-6//

Lord, keep me from providing unwise and ignorant advice about Your ways.

“But as a mountain erodes and crumbles and as a rock is moved from its place, as water wears away stones and torrents wash away the soil, so you destroy a person’s hope.
Job 14:18-19//

How quick we are to blame God and think He wants the worst for us when things do not go as expected.