I sat at my 97 year old grandmother’s nursing home bedside a few days before her death in September 2007. She wanted to talk but couldn’t so she asked me to talk. I began reflecting on John 10, the words I would teach in Bible Class the next day – Jesus, the Good Shepherd. She whispered, “Cindy, you are so faithful.” In tears with a heavy heart, knowing my grandmother would soon see Jesus face to face I replied, “Grandma, Jesus is faithful.” After a strong, intentional pause my Grandmother said, “That’s what brings you around.” God blessed me with the gift of holding her, my mentor, my friend, as she took her last breath. She lived her life and died peacefully in the steady assurance of God’s faithfulness to her and she gave that gift to me.

There will be a day when God calls us to fully trust in his mercy alone – not in our accomplishments, our wealth, all the volunteer work we have done, and not in our righteousness. Others will be there to comfort and to hold, but we will go it alone. Our mouths will be stopped and we will rest in God’s mercy through the perfect life suffering, death and resurrection of his son.

God calls us to that day today. Today is practice for the day we are fully aware that we have nothing to offer God, not even a word. Today is the day we die in his arms to ourselves and rise up in his resurrection. Today is the day we rest in his Word – you are my child, my life is lived in you and your life is lived in me, now and for eternity. Our mouths will be stopped and we will listen to the sure Word of God.

Job’s friends drove him deeper into despair because, while every word with which they tried to comfort him contained threads of truth, they drove him deeper into the lie that God is faithful because he was faithful. IT! is a lie – NEWK-IT! We are called to allow God’s word to explode out of our lives the Satan induced, contrived notion that God causes suffering because we deserve it because of specific sins or don’t deserve it because of our righteous behavior. God created Adam and Eve to live with him forever. They judged God’s gift as lacking, so they took action apart from God’s will. God declares, “I give you my righteous son, in your place. He will take what you deserve and I give you his righteousness, his life, his mercy, his love.”

God had some questions for Job. First he told Job, a man whom God had allowed Satan to take every earthly possession away from and laced his body with boils to dress like a man ready for action. These were serious questions being asked of a man who had nothing to offer God.

Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said:  ²"Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? ³ Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me. ⁴"Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. ⁵Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Job 38:1-5a

Job was silenced, as are we. Job rested in God’s faithfulness, as do we. Life is a process and we are learning to trust in the sure word of the living God who lives, who lives in us and through us. Today is the day, tonight is the night we rest in him. May God grant us courage to rest in his faithfulness and rise to life, full and free. May God grant us courage to allow his word to NEWK the lies. May God grant us boldness to proclaim his mercy. Blessings IN Christ, Cindy

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