During an especially stressful time, I found myself waking up in the early hours of the morning for no apparent reason. I grew increasingly frustrated with this, as my mind would start reeling with all the things that created the stress I was feeling. As a result, my body was not  getting the rest it needed.

Then one morning, as I lay awake pondering why this was happening to me again,  I once again asked God to help me get back to sleep. This time, however, I asked God, ‘Why?’ And I phrased it more like a demand than a question. In the stillness of that night, itwas as if God answered me by asking, ‘Who hears you? Who helps you?  Who heals you?’ I was quickly reminded that God always hears me; he always helps me; and he always heals me in a perfect way and time.

How many times do we ask God why our prayers are not being answered? I think we have all identified with Job at some point. When we see, as Job eventually does, that our suffering can lead us to a deeper understanding of God, we can persist in trusting him through all our struggles.

 

Prayer: Dear God, help us, like Job, to persist in trusting you. Amen