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Jason is the founder of Ignite Student Ministries, a dynamic ministry igniting youth, young adults and university students to passionately pursue Christ and transform society in high schools, work places and universities around the world.

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Trusting God’s Character

Jason VanaJason Vana

Photo Credit: Flickr user vagawi (Creative Commons)

The Bible frustrates me at times.

I know a lot of people look at this book as an instruction manual on life – just spend a few minutes in it each day and you’ll have all the answers you need. It’s easy to follow, has all the answers, and if followed correctly, will give you the best life you can possibly have.

But the deeper you dig into the Word, the more you study it, the more you meditate on it, the more you see that it’s not all so cut and dry.

I ran across one of those instances in the book of Job:

“Then the LORD said to Satan, ‘Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil. And he still maintains his integrity, though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason.'” – Job 2:3

We all know the story. It’s one I’ve read through multiple times myself. Satan asks to mess with Job. God agrees. Satan destroys everything Job has and everything he loves. Then follows 30-some chapters of Job’s friends trying to tell him why God did this and Job complaining. God shows up and questions Job. Job repents and receives back everything he lost and more.

It’s a powerful story, one used to explain the hard times and how God is working in us.

Except  that’s not the lesson in this story at all. God didn’t have a purpose or a reason behind what He allowed in Job’s life. He said himself to the enemy, “you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason.”

It wasn’t a test.
God wasn’t building Job’s faith.
He wasn’t teaching Job a lesson, positioning him in a place to receive more, or weeding sin out of his heart.

God ruined Job for no reason.

It kind of messes with our “everything happens for a reason” theology. What do you do with a God who can ruin you without cause? What do you do with a God who doesn’t need a reason behind what He does? What do you do with a God who doesn’t follow the rules we want Him to follow?

“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” – Isaiah 55:9

This God we serve isn’t a formula. He isn’t a genie. He doesn’t follow our preconceived notions of who He is and what He should do. We can’t work the system, do all the right things, and expect to have the result we want.

He doesn’t work that way.

He is much bigger than our systems and thoughts and ways. He isn’t confined to our theology or doctrine. The laws of nature and physics and biology can’t contain Him.

And He can do whatever He wants.

Instead of trying to figure Him out, instead of trying to find and work the formulas for your best life now, instead of trying to determine the reason behind what happens in our lives, we just need to trust His character.

Trust that He is God.
Trust that He is good.
And trust that no matter what happens, it’s an outpouring of His love for us.

Sometimes, that’s all we can do.

How has God proved bigger than your ideas about Him?

Jason is the founder of Ignite Student Ministries, a dynamic ministry igniting youth, young adults and university students to passionately pursue Christ and transform society in high schools, work places and universities around the world.