March 23

Job 1:20‑22
“Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, and said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly” ―Job 1:20-2220Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, 21And said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. 22In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly. (Job 1:20‑22).
SUDDENLY bereft of nearly all that his heart held dearest, Job’s confidence in God shines out most brilliantly. He made no foolish charge against his Creator, as though such testings were a denial of His love. He recognized that he had to do with One infinite in wisdom, as in grace, and he could glorify Him in the hour of trial. Bereavements often prove just where the heart is. If occupied with persons, however dear, rather than with the Lord Himself, there will be a break-down when human props are taken away. But where God fills the vision of the soul, the heart will rest in Him though all else may vanish.
I cannot tell why life should thus be shorn, —
Or heart thus emptied be:
Why stricken, broken, desolate, forlorn,
Should be my life’s decree:
Yet—through my blinding tears I fain would trace
The unchanged outline of Thy tender face.”
—J. Denson Smith.