There are a lot of interesting one liners in the book of Job. Some of them offered in the midst of bad advice, others offered in a desperate attempt to make sense of misery. This week, I want to focus on three passages from the book of Job and what we can apply to our lives from their truths.

First, a word from Job’s lips, uttered toward a God who is “past finding out.” In Chapter 9, Job speaks of the glory of the heavens, the sun and the stars, and then moves into the utter majesty of our Creator. In the midst, though, Job completely steps on my toes. See if he steps on yours, too:

“Who can say to Him, ‘What are You doing?’” – Job 9:12

Ever been guilty of that? Because I sure have. In the desperate moments of life, I have stood looking out at my life wondering what to do — reeling from heartbreak and loss— asking what God was doing. Where was He? What was I supposed to do, and why wasn’t He making it known?

I’m guilty of going through trauma and pain and asking God why I’m going through it. Why is He letting me suffer? Why did He allow a certain situation to happen? Why did my life have to be like it was? What was He doing? How was He being glorified through this?

If you continue reading through the book of Job, especially into God’s almighty response, you realize that you have no need to question God. Sure, you can. And sometimes, it may be a healthy, grieving response. But in the depths of your mind, know that you don’t need to. That you don’t have to. You don’t have to question God. He IS God. All-knowing. All-powerful. Everywhere, all the time. And HE “cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7). He always has your best interest in mind, because that’s what agape is. That is why He sent Jesus. To heal you. Redeem you. Put you back together, molded in His image. To save you from death and grief and eternal pain.

There will be trials — really hard, ugly trials — but in them we are not alone. We have a God watching and listening and caring and loving. We have a Savior who is pleading on our behalf. We have a Spirit who is letting our groaning become words before the King. So don’t be afraid. Don’t feel conquered. Don’t rebuke God. Don’t assume He’s not there, or that He’s doing something else. Don’t assume He’s doing anything other than what is best for you. Because He loves you. Always has, always will.

Whatever life has in store for us in 2016, we can be confident that our God is there. The God who arranged the heavens and created all that we see and touch is the God who provides for us, listens to us, and will one day call us home to be with Him forever. Don’t lose hope. Don’t give up. Don’t fall into a pit of deep despair, at least, not so deep that you can’t see the light of God. Because it’s always there. Sometimes, you might just need to remind yourself to open your eyes.