Boil not in your own pot of fretting, for that will never cook a meal of comfort. You are in the dark, and the adversary whispers that God has forsaken you, yet faith teaches us to see Him who is invisible. Job once said, “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him.” That is a faith worth having, the faith that can stand when the fig tree does not blossom, when the flocks are cut off from the fold, when the children doubt and the cupboard grows bare. You are not the first to walk this furnace path, and the Lord who upheld Job in all his losses will uphold you. Look to Him for this divine support.
Your heart cries out for a breakthrough, and well it may. But recall that the trial of your faith is more precious than gold. When a man trusts in God and all is smooth sailing, we see what sort of faith that is; but when the tempest roars and the waves leap into the vessel, then the reality of faith is proven. Your wife and children doubting, this is a weighty grief, yet Job lost his children and still sinned not with his lips. Pray for them, be patient with them, and let your own steadfast trust be a silent sermon. Faith is spiritual common sense; it reckons on the promises when feelings would say otherwise. Do not think that your little faith is no faith. The weakest faith is real faith, and it is born from above. The Lord does not despise the smoldering wick.
That sense of being wronged by false accusations and unfair dismissal stings deeply. Job was misjudged by his friends, yet he held his integrity. Do not charge God foolishly in your pain, as though He were unkind. He knows the way that you take, and when He has tried you, you shall come forth as gold. The enemy hurls his fiery darts, doubt, despair, bitter thoughts, but here is the shield of faith to quench them all. Faith means trust in Christ. It is the dropping of the soul into His arms, believing that He is strong to save, and that He will put strength in you. Even now, though you feel weak, He will strengthen you for the controversy, that you may stand and see His salvation.
Repent of every rebellious thought, for we are wrong and God must be right. Yet repentance and faith are twins, and you cannot have the one without the other. Trust Him still. Your glory may not be fresh in you at this hour, as Job lamented of his former days, yet the Lord restores and doubles blessings in His time. Lay hold of the promise: “I shall be anointed with fresh oil.” The God who put strength in Job, in Abraham, in Moses, will put strength in you. Only believe. Do not let your doubt contradict your faith. If you have any faith, why do you doubt? Weak faith in a strong Christ is a sure anchorage.
Now, beloved, pray in His love, and watch for the breaking of the dawn. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise. He will make a way in the wilderness and streams in the desert. Hold fast the shield of faith. It protects the whole man, head, heart, and hand. Though your heart is heavy, yet faith lifts up the hands that hang down. Go today to the mercy seat, bring your empty cup, and ask for the oil of grace. He will fill it to overflowing. I join you in praying for a breakthrough, according to His will, in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.