Job's Wife

"And he took him a potsherd to scrape himself withal; and he sat down among the ashes. Then said his wife unto him, 'Dost thou still retain thine integrity? Curse God, and die.'" ~ Job 2:8-9 KJV

Many people think that believing in God protects them from trouble; so when calamity comes, they question God's goodness and justice, or even His existence. This seems to be the path that Job's wife took as trouble came down on her family. She and her husband were reeling from numerous losses, but her tendency was to abandon faith that God was good or able to help. She even suggested that Job "curse God and die".

But the message of Job is this: We should not give up on God when He allows us to have hard experiences. Faith in God does not guarantee personal prosperity, and lack of faith doesn't guarantee troubles in this life. If they did, we would believe in God simply to get rich or happy.

God is capable of rescuing us from suffering, but He may also allow suffering for reasons we cannot understand. Satan’s strategy is to get us to doubt God at exactly this moment. Job's wife fell into this trap. She seemed to assume that if she lived a righteous life, she was entitled to a life of personal comfort.

Our age of instant everything has caused us to lose the ability to wait patiently through such times. We even expect to learn patience instantly, and in our hurry, we fail to see the contradiction. Of all that we want now, relief from pain and trouble is often at the top of the list. But if we always knew why we were suffering and when it would end, our faith would have no room to grow.