Reading 1
Jb 3:1-3, 11-17, 20-23
Job opened his mouth and cursed his day.
Job spoke out and said:
Perish the day on which I was born,
the night when they said, "The child is a boy!"
Why did I not perish at birth,
come forth from the womb and expire?
Or why was I not buried away like an untimely birth,
like babes that have never seen the light?
Wherefore did the knees receive me?
or why did I suck at the breasts?
For then I should have lain down and been tranquil;
had I slept, I should then have been at rest
With kings and counselors of the earth
who built where now there are ruins
Or with princes who had gold
and filled their houses with silver.
There the wicked cease from troubling,
there the weary are at rest.
Why is light given to the toilers,
and life to the bitter in spirit?
They wait for death and it comes not;
they search for it rather than for hidden treasures,
Rejoice in it exultingly,
and are glad when they reach the grave:
Those whose path is hidden from them,
and whom God has hemmed in!
Gospel
Lk 9:51-56
When the days for Jesus to be taken up were fulfilled,
he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem,
and he sent messengers ahead of him.
On the way they entered a Samaritan village
to prepare for his reception there,
but they would not welcome him
because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem.
When the disciples James and John saw this they asked,
"Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven
to consume them?"
Jesus turned and rebuked them,
and they journeyed to another village.
Meditation: Job 3:1-3,11-17,20-23
“Perish the day on which I was born!” (Job 3:3)
With these words, Job begins his journey of discovery. Having lost everything that his culture would view as a sign of God’s blessing—his wealth, his family, even his health—Job now must ask who God really is. On one level, you can read his story and be filled with pity for the poor man. But a closer reading shows us that as he travels this difficult road, Job becomes someone we can all identify with.
At first, Job’s understanding of God is very limited. Job, a humble and righteous man, sees God as the one who blesses him for his goodness. His friends come to comfort him in his illness and loss, but theirs is a cold comfort indeed. “You must have done something to deserve this,” says one. Another suggests that Job has some secret sins hidden away for which God is punishing him. But all the while, Job protests that he is innocent and that God should not be treating him this way.
And where is God? For much of the book, he remains silent, giving Job and his friends plenty of time to think and argue and debate about how just—or rather, how unjust—God appears to be.
Most of us can identify with Job at this stage of his journey. We have all had to deal with sicknesses, death, wounded relationships, or family strife. Challenges like these can shake the foundations of our faith. But this kind of shaking can be a good thing. After all, it’s the hard times that test and strengthen our faith. There’s no real challenge when life is good. Knowing this truth may not make the situation go away, but it can give us comfort. God is always at work in us, calling us to a deeper surrender to him.
God has set each one of us on our own journey of faith, and that journey will not always be an easy or happy one. But when we hold onto the Lord no matter what the situation, the journey will make us more alive, more hopeful, even more human. God knows how to make something beautiful out of something broken.
“Dear Jesus, I know you walk with me every step of the way. Shine a light in every corner of my being so that I can trust you in every situation.”
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