"The Lord Giveth and the Lord Taketh Away" - Job 1:21
Today I watched the episode of "19 Kids and Counting" where Michelle Duggar miscarries and loses her baby. The quote from Job came up while watching. After the miscarriage, Michelle and Jim Bob were praying.
The prayers were not prayers of sorrow and sadness, or begrudging God, or helping them to see why He would create such a horrible tragedy.
The prayers were prayers of jubilation and gratitude:
Dear Lord, Thank you for 17 wonderful weeks with this baby. Thank you for bringing our family together. Thank you for putting this child out of whatever suffering she must have been in. Thank you for the joy of being pregnant again.
Even in their darkest hour, they were present to all the goodness.
God is so kind to me, and how often am I ungrateful? How often do I only notice what is lacking in my life (like a phone call from a particular person) instead of noticing all that is great (a dinner with a good friend, financial security, a job that I love, opportunities to serve, a beautiful home and dog, beautiful friends and family, an education, everything)?
This quote is a good reminder to me of four items:
(1) Always be filled with gratitude.
(2) Be willing to be vulnerable. Even if your vulnerability results in your hurt and sadness (like when he doesn't call), it has also brought so much goodness with it - a chance to fall in love, the experiences of anticipation and delight, an opportunity to learn and discover, to serve and care for someone other than myself.
(3) God has a plan for us. If God didn't give you what you want, He gave you something BETTER!
(4) God will never take away His LOVE!
