Stand & Read - Job 1:20-22
“Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head, and he fell to the ground and worshiped. [21] And he said ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked I shall return there. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord." [22] Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God.”
“It’s NOT Okay God!”
Let me ask you a question this morning…Have you ever had a bad day before???
Then this is for you today!
PRAYER…
If you have ever had a bad day, say…”I have had a bad day!”
If you have not ever had a bad day, this is not for you…
If you have never had a difficult time, you are pardoned from class today…
If you feel as though the devil has been hot on your trail EVER, then I have something for you today…
There is a redeeming value to those bad days, IF YOU TO SUCH…
Now, I DON’T have any of those goofy saying to give to you to give you a fresh perspective…
-“If life hands you lemons…then make lemonade”
-“If you get to the end of your rope…tie a knot and hang on”
No, NO!!! I have something better for you…
I have something of more value that I think we need to learn and apply to our lives…
Yes…troubles we certainly know…TRUE?!
We have heard the truth of the Word before that says, “God causes the rain to fall on the just and the unjust…He allows the sun to rise on the good and the evil.” Matt. 5:45
-Well, we know it, but for those of us who think that we are so good, we don’t like it because it seems as though God is still blessing the unjust or the evil…
It makes us angry…with feelings of betrayal by God and we become bitter…
Yet, we forget that we too were blessed when we were wandering far from God!!!
-As if God doesn’t have enough blessing for all of us…J
So why do we have the bad days?
Why do we have the bad hair days??
Why can’t we find anything to wear in our closets???
-You have been there!!! Right?!
BUT, why does God allow the rainy times and difficult seasons come to door looking for us???
Well, I have got an answer for you…”I DON’T KNOW!” J
-Really…there can be a number of reasons…
Consequences to bad choices…Have you made any???
Undeserved ill effects that are transpiring around you…Have you ever felt you were in the middle of a battle ground???
Intentional choices that are bringing bad things your way…Have you ever wished that things didn’t come your way, but you knew that you deserved it???
Maybe bad associations or friends have brought trouble your way…Have you heard of being guilty by association???
-In any event…the trouble is there…but we must be careful not to curse God!
Have you had a bad day???
Come on, you can admit it…you have had a few…
But I want to let you know that it IS OK!
You can admit it…
Say…”Everything IS NOT alright!”...Again!
Now, this has nothing to do with positive confession…it isn’t going to bring bad things upon you.
I just want you to understand that it is okay to have a bad day…
-It doesn’t make you less of a person…
-It doesn’t mean that you have fallen from God or you are in sin…
-It doesn’t speak of your character always…
You are just having a bad day…
ILLUSTRATION:
Tell of one of mine…
Running late for the office…
Ran the car into the snow bank and dented the bumper…
Forgot my keys to the church at home…had to go back…
Get in and forgot that I should have picked something up on the way into the office…
Did I fall from God??? NO!!!
What was my problem…”EVERYTHING WAS NOT OK!” J That is it!
-Have you had a day like mine? I am sure, even worse!
Can you have a bad day? Can you still be a GOOD Christian and have a bad day?
Can you admit that everything IS NOT OK?
Say…“It’s not OK!”
You want to talk of your bad days…take a look at Job’s life…
-I want to remind you that this is not a STORY of a man…
-This is real life…he was a real guy…with real problems in his life…
Job had a single bad day here…
In this single day Job lost all that He had…
-God over the story of God’s conversation with satan…
So God does allow for satan to sift Job…It says in verse 13…”ONE DAY”
-In this one day, it begins with Job’s oxen and donkeys being carried off…STOLEN…by a group of people called the Sabeans…the servants tending those animals were all killed too!
-Then, another messenger came to tell Job about another thing…Fire from heaven fell and burnt up Job’s sheep and servants…
-And if that wasn’t enough to get us screaming at our spouses, and kicking the
dog…another man comes to tell Job that there was a raid by the Chaldeans who stole all his camels, and killed those servants as well…
-But wait, there is more…another comes to tell Job that while his children were having another party at the eldest brother’s house…and a tornado hit the place and it collapsed onto all of them, killing them…
Not to make light of the situation, but this IS a bad day…
-But you know what? …It was OK!
You may call me crazy, but it is OK to have a bad day…
It was OK for Job to have this happen…
-He didn’t make it happen…
-It wasn’t for any other reason than that the enemy was having his way with him…
Have you had a bad day? Is everything NOT OK???
Say…”It’s not OK! BUT that’s OK!”
Everything may NOT be alright, but that’s alright…!
-God is still on the throne…
-God is still in control…
-You have not been abandoned…God is ever closer to those who are in need!
You may be saying…what does he mean…”It’s okay?”
Hear this, this morning…and be encouraged by the Psalmist…
Psalm 91:2
I will say to the Lord, "My refuge and my fortress,
My God, in whom I trust!"
Psalm 59:16
But as for me, I shall sing of Thy strength;
Yes, I shall joyfully sing of Thy lovingkindness in the morning,
For Thou hast been my stronghold,
And a refuge in the day of my distress.
O my strength, I will sing praises to Thee;
For God is my stronghold, the God who shows me lovingkindness.
Psalm 62:7-8
On God my salvation and my glory rest;
The rock of my strength, my refuge is in God.
[8] Trust in Him at all times, O people;
Pour out your heart before Him;
God is a refuge for us.
Selah.
Why can we say that it’s OK when it’s NOT OK???
-Because God is My refuge and my strength!
-He gives help and we can Trust Him…Hope in Him…even Rest in Him…
This is what we see evidenced throughout the life of Job…
Not only did THIS bad day take place in his life, but many, many bad days transpired…and yet! …he was able to remain blameless before God.
-YES, Job had times of wavering faith and darkness…but…he did NOT turn against God…
He did vent his feelings to God, but He did not curse God as his wife told him to do in the 2nd chapter…
Job said a wise thing when he said, “We accept the good from God with no questions…why not the bad?”
My friends…we ARE going to have bad days…
How should we respond to them???
-We should pray for grace for the journey, so that we may endure what God has allowed to come our way…
-And ask for God to reveal to you an understanding of WHY it is taking place…
Our issue, often, is this…
We know troubles will come…all through the Scripture, we are told that trials and tribulations will come…so be encouraged! J
1 Peter 4:12
“Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you…”
-We know they will come…
But we get hitched up when we see other prospering around us…especially the “UNGODLY”!!!
That really burns us up doesn’t it??? Don’t let it!
Psalm 37:1-9
“Do not fret because of evildoers,
Be not envious toward wrongdoers.
[2] For they will wither quickly like the grass,
And fade like the green herb.
[3] Trust in the Lord, and do good;
Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
[4] Delight yourself in the Lord;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.
[5] Commit your way to the Lord,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it.
[6] And He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
And your judgment as the noonday.
[7] Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.
[8] Cease from anger, and forsake wrath;
Do not fret, it leads only to evildoing.
[9] For evildoers will be cut off,
But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land.”
My friends, we well know that we will do ourselves in when we look around at others…
We all to easily see what they HAVE, and we DON’T have…
-Stay focused on the Lord…
-Keep looking to Him, the author and finisher of your faith…
Had a bad day…? YES!
Is everything OK? NO!
But, is it OK? YEAH!
The whole book of Job is a picture to us what can happen to us…
It is also a picture of what our attitude can be throughout our ordeals…
-Job encapsulized a perfect thought, for such trouble, so well with the one line…”Naked we came into the world, and naked we shall leave it, BUT blessed be the Name of the Lord!”
Can you say that it is OK, when it isn’t? If He is your refuge and strength you can!
And then you can say…”So, Blessed be the Name of the Lord!”
Say…”Praise the Lord anyway!!!”
After Job heard all the bad news he does a deeply mature, submissive and humble thing…
-He begins to …WORSHIP GOD!?!?!
-Yes, Job begins to worship GOD!!!
When the rest of us would have been ready to scream, rant and rave…
Job falls to the ground and gives God praise!
-Have you ever done this???
For most, if not all, the answer would be no!
I mean, it almost seems crazy to thank God or praise Him for catastrophy.
In those previous passages concerning God being our refuge and strength…we can read there of those who trust in God…sing praise to Him…and hope in God…
-All the while they are finding God to be their refuge???
-Now, if they are needing God to be their refuge, they must be having troubles too…YET, they are praising God!
How about some of those that we find in the Word who were in dire straights…
-Shadrack, Meshack and Abendigo were in dire trouble…and yet they were praising, defending, and standing up for God…even in huge trouble…
-What about Daniel in the Lion’s Den, when he was thrown in He was still trusting God and believing Him…
-How about Paul and Silas in the prison one night, bound up…yet they were praising God and lifting Him up…
None of these were complaining…whining…or whimpering…
They were focused and dedicated to God…
Say it again…”Praise the Lord anyway!!!”
They were having a bad day, but that was OK, because God’s name must still be praised!!!
My friends, I want to give you something important to think about…
Why do we praise God???
We often praise Him, but for reasons…GOOD reasons, but reasons, nonetheless, that benefit us!
Who is praise for in the first place?
-We want certain songs to sing and worship to…but God doesn’t care about that, He wants your worship…
-We want to do it when we feel like it…but God doesn’t give to you when He “feels” like it…He desire & deserves your worship always…
Worship is for God, not us…oh, how we have perverted things and turned them around…L
ILLUSTRATION:
The song…The Heart Of Worship put it so well…
It says, “I’m coming back to the heart of worship, and its all about you, it all about you Jesus. I’m sorry Lord for the things I’ve made it, but it’s all about you, it’s all about you Jesus!”
Psalm 29:1-2
“Ascribe to the Lord, O sons of the mighty,
Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
[2] Ascribe to the Lord the glory due to His name;
Worship the Lord in holy array.”
Psalm 34:1-3
“I will bless the Lord at all times;
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
[2] My soul shall make its boast in the Lord;
The humble shall hear it and rejoice.
[3] O magnify the Lord with me,
And let us exalt His name together.”
Worship God…in the good & the bad…
Worship God…when you are up & when you are down…
Worship God…if you feel like it & when you don’t feel like it…
Worship God…when you are told to stop & when you are not…
Worship God…because HE IS WORTHY OF IT!!!
So…what am I trying to say today…
Be a worshipper of God!!!
-Worship God…for worship’s sake…not to draw closer…not to feel better…not to receive a blessing…but JUST BECAUSE!
That is why we can do it even when we are having a bad day…because then the focus can still be just because God is GOD!!!
If God were never to do another thing for you…could you…would you… still worship Him!
When we get to heaven, there will be worship…and that worship will be for worship’s sake…
Even as the Heavenly Host will be singing, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty Who was and is and is to come!!!”
There, there will be no other need for worship, but for God’s glory…because we will have not needs there…
-May we practice that now in our lives…
Have you had a bad day… Yes!
Is it OK… No!
But, is it OK… Yeah!
SO BLESSED BE THE NAME OF THE LORD!
Everything is not OK Lord, but that is OK! Praise your Holy Name…!!!
Let’s praise the Lord for a moment this morning!
SONGS:
The Heart Of Worship
Praise the Name of Jesus
I Worship You, Almighty God
Let There Be Glory & Honor
ALTAR CALL:
-SALVATION CALL…
-Having a bad day…several days…
-Everything is NOT okay…
-But you want to focus on the fact that it IS okay…
Run to your refuge and strength…
-Give Him praise that is due His name this morning…
