We’ve been given the gift of the Holy Spirit, God’s agent of illumination. As we engage with the LORD the Holy Spirit reveals fresh insights about God’s nature and helps us identify with the heart and mind of God, transforming our nature for God’s greater purposes. The more we advance along the process, the more we shift gears in life as we identify with new virtues, perspectives, attitudes, character traits, and behaviors to bring us into alignment with the nature of God so we can experience the life of God.
RELEVANCE
Unless you drive a stick shift, you don’t experience the phenomena of switching gears as your feet maneuver the clutch, gas pedal and brake. Some people see standard transmissions as a hassle; others consider it a sport. It depends on the vehicle you’re driving! Either way, the learning experience is a challenge. It requires more engagement with the instruments than an automatic transmission does.
God seeks to engage with us. The Bible illustrates Job’s engagement; commonly known as Job’s trial. God allowed Job’s trial and sufferings to prove His sovereignty over the heavens and earth, life and death. He also allowed Job—as He does all His children—the opportunity to engage and relate with Him and prove his heart.
Satan challenged God to remove His protection from Job to see if Job would turn on God and curse Him. Upon losing his health and family, Job did question God, and express his deepest emotions of anguish and despair. He never, however, cursed God. Satan lost the war over Job’s soul.
Job benefited by gaining a new perspective on life. Beyond experiencing a healthy dose of humility, he saw God in a new light. He was given a glimpse of the many dimensions of God he had never seen before. “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you” (Job 42:5).
God had a good purpose at heart. Job went through a transition in life. He was transformed for his good and God’s glory. Life as he knew it shifted—for the better. As Scripture says, “Indeed the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before” (Job 42:10).
REFLECT AND RELATE
If God is bringing you through a transition, the place to learn how to maneuver is the place of prayer. Your owner’s manual is His Word. He will help you through it to navigate the transition.
REFERENCES
Psalm 18:1-50; 28:6-9; 119:105; Proverbs 20:27