In The Hem of His Garment, Job was a frequent topic of conversation. Job—the man who was blameless and upright before the Lord and yet the man on whom God allowed Satan to inflict every kind of pain and suffering. I cannot imagine losing my livelihood, my household, my children, and my health successively, with no time to heal or recover in between.

Job’s misguided friends blamed him for much of his misery, adding relational and secondary pain to the financial, physical, and spiritual pain he already endured. Job listened to and managed their criticism for much longer than I could have, until he finally struck out and began asking God, “Why?” With the scabs of his losses being fresh and swollen and his heart yearning for life as it was before, he couldn’t see a purpose for his pain or a path through it.

The Questions Job Should Have Asked

God didn’t respond immediately, and when he finally offered his wisdom to Job, he didn’t answer the question, “Why?” Instead, God provided the answers to the more important questions that Job probably should have been asking:

Who are you, God?
What does my suffering say about you?
What do you want me to learn from this experience?
And how will you work even this tragedy for my good?

The Futility of Asking “Why?”: Finding Clarity in God’s Revelations

I’ve asked those questions.

I’ve never found it helpful to ask why pain and suffering have occurred.

It wouldn’t make me feel any better to know why someone abused a child, why a spouse had an extramarital affair, why a murderer randomly chose a victim, or why cancer took the life of someone I loved.

It would do nothing to minimize the pain and likely cause me to become angry because the answer would be insufficient to justify the suffering.

God didn’t answer Job’s question, “Why?” Instead, he revealed more of himself to Job, just as he did to Scott throughout his cancer experience and subsequent treatment journey and as he has done so often for me.

Suffering Draws Us into a Greater Understanding of God

We will never fully appreciate the limitlessness of God until we cross through the veil into glory.

God spent a couple of chapters listing his résumé to Job, impressing upon him Job’s very limited understanding of the vastness of God. Through his pain and suffering, Job grew closer to God as his grasp of God increased. “My ears had heard of you, but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes” (Job 42:5–6).

The answer to Job’s questions no longer concerned him because his suffering yielded an intimate appreciation and understanding of God that he could have gleaned in no other way.

Finding Deeper Relationship with God through Pain

In our humanness, pain often prompts us to question God, to question his purpose and his plan, to question his character. If I hurt, is God still good? If God allowed this suffering in my life, can he be trusted?

Job’s story makes clear that God does not despise our doubt, our fears, and our questions. He welcomes the communication. But Job’s account reveals that God is often more concerned with bringing us into a deeper relationship with him, and a greater appreciation of who he is, than he is with answering our specific questions.

Friend, if we gain nothing more through our painful trials and suffering than a greater understanding of who God is and appreciate a deeper, more intimate relationship with him through it, we remain blessed indeed.

*The above is an excerpt from Sacred Scars: Resting in God’s Promise That Your Past is Not Wasted by Dr. Michelle Bengtson ©2024 Revell Publishers, used with permission.

Sacred Scars: Resting in God’s Promise that Your Pain is Not Wasted

Now Available!

We all endure trials, pain, and hardship in this life. Too often we believe these experiences disqualify us from being useful to God. But the truth is, your past pain and brokenness serve as preparation for what God wants to do in and through you – if you will surrender to and trust him.

Just as Jesus’s scars didn’t disappear after his resurrection, our emotional or physical scars tell our story and lend credence to our testimony of God’s love and power. If you are ready to turn your past pain into present comfort and future hope, let Dr. Bengtson be your compassionate guide.

Find out more and order here: Sacred Scars