Comfort

In our Sunday School lesson on Job, the question is asked, "How would you want people to respond to you when you experience suffering?" -- (a) explain it to me (b) pray for me (c) comfort me (d) try to understand my circumstances (e) other

Job's friends came to give him comfort in the midst of his misery ... but NOT! They scrutinized him instead, they determined Job had sinned against God, why else would all these bad things have befallen him. Friend No. 1 Eliphaz says in Job 5:27 "Behold, this we have searched out; It is true. Hear it, and know for yourself."

But Job was righteous. God said so. God doesn't lie. He is all about Truth.

We have no right to sit in judgement of another. To come to another to give aid, comfort in times of distress is all fine and good, but to contemplate and determine why this other is in misery and then proceed to inform them how they got that way and how to get out of it, is just plain Wrong!

Bad things happen to good people. Often it is God's way of testing us, to help us grow in Him.
But even when it is not a test, we are still growing. We either learn to lean on God for our strength, or we lean on ourselves and other people. I prefer to lean on God ... I have tried leaning on myself and others ... but its overly stressful. God helps me rid myself of stress, He gives me rest.