At some point in our lives, each person has experienced loss. Maybe the loss of a championship game or the loss of a pet. Maybe it is a job or financial loss, or even the loss of a friend. Loss is felt when an adult child moves out of your home for the first time to make their way in life. An aching loss is experienced with the death of a loved one. Loss hurts, bringing emotional pain. Loss initiates grief with each person walking through the grieving process differently. However, no one suffered loss quite like Job did.

Living in the land of Uz, Job was, in fact, the richest man in the entire area. He had seven sons and three daughters. He owned 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 teams of oxen, and 500 donkeys with many servants caring for all the needs of his household. Yet Job was not just rich in possession and family, he was spiritually rich. He feared God and stayed away from evil. He was upright and loved God with his whole heart.

Gathering in heaven’s courts one day, God pointed Job out to Satan. He described Job as the finest man in all the earth, blameless, and a man of complete integrity. God knew Job’s heart, yet Satan countered God. Satan attributed Job’s devotion to God as a result of all the blessing from God. God allowed Satan to put Job to the test to prove Job’s love for Him.

Loss…for Job it came in just a few short minutes, and in those minutes, Job lost everything. As his children were feasting in his eldest son’s house, reports came in one after the other that all his oxen, donkeys, and camels were stolen. The sheep had been consumed by fire. Only the messengers had escaped with their lives with the rest of Job’s servants dead. Yet all of this loss was nothing compared to the final grief that came as another messenger completed the tragic news by reporting a windstorm had destroyed his son’s home killing all his children.

Job’s response to this incredible devastation?

“Job stood up and tore his robe in grief. Then he shaved his head and fell to the ground to worship. He said, “I came naked from my mother’s womb, and I will be naked when I leave. The Lord gave me what I had, and the Lord has taken it away. Praise the name of the Lord!” In all of this, Job did not sin by blaming God.” (Job 1:20-22 NLT)

Of course, Satan was not satisfied with Job’s devotion to God. Knowing Job still had his good health, he would still find reason to praise the name of the Lord. God gave Satan permission to attack Job physically.

Satan struck Job with terrible boils from head to foot putting him in complete misery. As he sat among ashes scraping his skin with broken pottery, his wife came to him and spoke.

“Are you still trying to maintain your integrity? Curse God and die.” (Job 2:9)

You see, Job’s wife had lost everything too. Before his sickness, both she and Job shared the same loss, the same deep grief. Now with the boils, Job’s sickness was too much. Whether her response came from anger at God or deep sympathy for the anguish of her husband, she just wanted the suffering and pain to end. Yet even in all of this, Job points out the foolishness of her words.

“But Job replied, “You talk like a foolish woman. Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?” So in all this, Job said nothing wrong.” (Job 2:10)

Maybe Job’s wife expected blessing from God because their household, and especially Job, had always faithfully followed Him. When troubles and devastating loss hit their family, she felt God was unjust or unfair. She could not understand why He was putting them through this pain. Honestly, we cannot know the intention behind her words to Job, but we do know they came from a place of deep grief. However, Job met her grief with truth. There was nothing they had, including their very lives, which did not come from the hand of God. God’s ways are not always known, but His ways were always good, even when life did not turn out the way she thought it should. Regardless of whether life was full of blessing or pain, God was more than worthy of praise.

Life may not turn out the way we thought it would. God never promised anyone a life free from suffering or pain, but He has promised to be with us in it. Though we may not see it, God’s ways are perfect. We do not always understand or know what is going on behind the scenes, but God is in control. He has a plan for our good and wants us to trust Him in it. When we are able to surrender our lives to Him, both the good and the bad, we will see His goodness and find God is more than worthy of praise.

Maybe you are facing loss in this season of your life. Allow God to step into your grief and shower His comfort and grace upon you. You will experience His comforting presence in a way you hadn’t before, and you will find that even in time of loss, God is worthy of praise.