Job 42:10  And the LORD restored Job’s losses when he prayed for his friends. Indeed, the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before.

For anyone who remembers the Story of Job, a man who loved God and trusted him greatly was known by God.  Yet, in less than a few days Job, lost all his children, his many possessions, and even his health.  He went from the ultimate high to the lowest of lows in an instant.  While there is so much more in Job’s story, I cannot help but call out this verse in chapter 42.  We see here that God restored everything that Job lost and more, he then blessed him with double the amount he had before.

WHY????  Why was Job so blessed originally?  Why was everything taken away? Why did God then give him double?  Why????

God Loves Job, his love for Job is no more or less than the Love God has for each one of us.  He loved Job and Job received that love as he feared God (Job 1:1 There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil).  God loves to bless His children and He wants to do it big.  

Satan is very jealous of the way that God loves us and truly believed that if God took away all the blessings that like every man, Job would turn his back on God.  Satan went on to say; “vs 10 Does Job fear God for nothing? Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But now, stretch out Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!”  Ultimately, God allowed Satan to attack Job and put the devil to the test.  

So, we know why Job was blessed and why he was attacked; but let’s focus on what it was that changed Job’s circumstances.  Prayer, the LORD restored Job’s losses when he prayed for his friends.  There were a couple of things that jumped out about this one verse, that I wanted to share with you today.

1.    What We Focus On:  If we can take our focus off our problems, circumstances, desires, and needs and focus on the needs of others; we leave a door open for God to bless us beyond our wildest dreams.  What it takes to focus on others when you are going through a struggle requires great selflessness. However, when you’re able to ask for God to help someone else you’re also able to see him moving on your behalf. Jesus was able to pray for all of His disciples, all of His followers, and each one of us that would one day become followers (John 17); all while knowing that He was about to go to the Cross.

2.    What We Look Beyond: Here’s something else I noticed; “he prayed for his friends” but in this book of Job we have to remember that these we’re friends that Job felt had betrayed him; thought poorly of him; humiliated him; they really hurt him and they did it thinking they were doing it for his good.  Are we able to pray for those “friends” that have failed us or turned their backs on us or like Jobs’s friends have judged us for something we’ve shared with them in confidence? This takes humility; to forgive the wrong of others and be willing to not hold against them their faults. Jesus was on the cross and if you’ll recall, He prayed for those who were crucifying Him (Luke 23:34 Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.”) 

Job helps us to see just how we can shift our actions and become a KEY to changing our situation.  When it seems like everything is against us, we can remember that Jesus is always for us and as a matter of fact He’s already prayed for us that we might make it THRU our current circumstance.  Trust Him and His prayers to become yours as we lift up the needs of others, then we’ll see the CHANGE we are believing for. 

Psalm 27:4-6a One thing I have desired of the LORD, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the LORD, And to inquire in His temple. For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle, He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.  And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me.

We’ve just finished a fun and much-needed holiday season; I hope that you indeed enjoyed it. Every year when the holidays come around, like many people I really enjoy the environment created by the season.  I enjoy the weather (although now I live in TX), the sweet treats, the lights, and the smiles.  While I enjoy the season for many reasons, there is one thing that I truly desire around Christmas & New Year is Egg Nog; much to the chagrin of my wife.  I used the term desire because it is defined as a strong feeling of wanting to have something or wishing for something to happen.  I have strong feelings of wanting the Egg Nog and wishing for something to happen so I can get some for myself.  It causes me to go seeking after it and spending money in order to obtain it. My desire in this case played a heavy role in my behavior.   

Now in the spirit of continuing our deep dive into David, the one known to be the Man After God’s Own Heart, let’s look into what it is that David desired.  In this 27th Psalm, David uses the same word desire, however, its meaning is completely different.  This Hebrew word sa’al (shael), actually means to inquire or to request.  Much different than the strong urging I had for my sweet nectar; David is asking God for something.  David is inquiring about something very important from the Lord, so let’s dig into David’s Desire a little deeper. 

David Desired:

1. To Live with the Lord: One thing I have desired of the LORD, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD All the days of my life.  David is seeking to dwell, or inhabit, or abide with the Lord in His home.  He is seeking to be wherever God is and I believe that is one of the things that sets him apart from so many others.  David desires to be with God all the days of his life.  Every second, every minute, every hour.  While many just want to spend an hour with him on Sunday, maybe a few minutes during the week.  I see why this attitude is so pleasing to the Lord, His son is desiring to be with him all the time.  Being with Jesus that much means that David is opening his entire life to the Lord’s (Jesus’) presence.  This level of transparency requires changes to bad habits, unhealthy attitudes, and dysfunctional behavior.  Are you willing to open yourself up to Jesus?  Because His love will not allow us to remain the same.  
   
2. To Behold the Lord’s Beauty: To behold the beauty of the LORD, And to inquire in His temple.  While David desired to open himself up to the Lord, he also desired to see the Lord’s beauty.  However, it goes beyond just seeing, the word behold or “haza” is to see, to perceive, prophesy.  Therefore, David asks to see His beauty; to notice, observe and appreciate the beautiful savior; to receive revelation from the Lord’s beautiful plan for him.  David was seeking the beautiful face, heart and soul of the Lord, ultimately gaining God’s insight and perspective.  What a beautiful thing.        
   
3. To Hide in the Lord: For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle, He shall hide me.  The last thing I want to look at is David’s desire to find protection in the Lord.  We talked earlier about God’s Hiding Place, and David is revisiting God’s protective nature.  Here he talks about being protected in time of trouble.  The Lord’s secret hiding place is labeled His pavilion or His tabernacle.  The interesting thing that I noticed was that His hiding place was not a castle or a fortress, but a much more easily mobile space.  Both the are pavilion (hut, lair or booth) and tabernacle (tent) are portable; able to be moved, shifted and transformed.  The tabernacle is actually symbolic of wilderness life; meaning David and each of us often lives our lives in the wilderness trying to get to green pastures. 

David’s Desire really shows us how a seemingly simple request can draw us so close to the Lord Jesus.  His desire to be open and transparent with Jesus the Healer, who will not allow us to stay the same, gives us the opportunity to be healed and changed in His presence.  David’s desire to gain insight and perspective from the Lord gives us a chance to observe the beauty of Jesus.  And the desire David shares for feeling protected while out in the wilderness is something that we all should be able to relate to as we live out life as a Christian in today’s world.  And if you’ve not yet accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, what a beautiful opportunity to see that you can welcome Jesus into your heart today and begin to live with the Lord and see His beauty as He’s hiding you in the secret place of His tabernacle (Just ask Jesus to come in…He desires to live in you).