by Pastor Ken Duke  I was reading my devotional  today; from Oswald  Chambers book “My  Utmost for His Highest“,  and today’s lesson struck me  right smack in the kisser. In  Job 42:10, it says “And the  Lord turned the captivity of  Job when he prayed for his  friends.” Some of you may  not know who Job was, but  he was a man who had  everything, wife, kids, lots  of animals, a fine home and  good, faithful friends. Yet,  one day the Lord allowed  Satan to put Job to the test  and Job lost everything, and  I mean everything.

He  ended up owning nothing,  none of his family survived;  left broken and destitute, yet  he still refused to curse  God. Now some of you  may wonder why God  would allow Satan to test  Job!!! So do I and I never  want to be tested in such a  way; yet, what we do find  out is no matter how righteous  and holy Job was, he  was still a sinner. He was a  man full of pride who  felt he deserved better from  God. How many of you  reading this would think we  deserve better too? Well, to  be honest; we don’t deserve  anything from Him, yet, He  has already provided all we  will ever need.  As Oswald Chambers said  and I paraphrase it, “The  complaining, selfcentred,  kind of prayer is  never found in the New  Testament.” He goes on to  say that the very thought of  thinking we can be right  with God is an act of rebellion  against Him and what  He has accomplished on the  Cross of Calvary. It totally  agree with Mr. Chambers,  for I cannot make my life  perfect;

 I can only be in  right standing with God  when I accept the Lord  Jesus Christ as an absolute  gift. The next question is,  are we humble enough to  accept this gracious and  wonderous gift? The  Scripture, “The Lord turned  the captivity of Job when he  prayed for his friends.” The  real business of our lives is  to love one another as Christ  has loved us and to pray for  our friends and loved ones.  So why don’t you pray for  your friends now; pray for  those with whom you come  in contact all through the  week. (source: My Utmost  for His Highest, by Oswald  Chambers, 1935, Dodd  Mead and Co.)