“Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil. And He still maintains his integrity, though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason.””
~ Job 2:3
Hi James and Ellen,
Do you enjoy being sick? Tell your dad and/or ma how you feel when you are sick. When your grandpaa has been sick, your grandpaa has felt really yucky. The first time when you grandpaa remembers being really sick was when he was still a young kid. Your grandpaa had virus pneumonia. Your grandpaa’s doctor thought that your grandpaa needed to stay in the hospital that was in Volga, South Dakota until your grandpaa was feeling better. Your grandpaa will never forget that experience of being all alone in a hospital – not knowing what was going to happen to him. The next time that your grandpaa remembers being sick was when he was in the fourth grade. Your grandpaa first became sick with strep throat. When your grandpaa’s ma took your grandpaa to the doctor, the doctor told your grandpaa’s ma that your grandpaa had rheumatic fever. Your grandpaa remembers that when he got home after his ma took him to the doctor that he headed straight for the couch that was in the living room of the house where your grandpaa lived to lie down because he just did not feel like doing anything. When your grandpaa became sick with rheumatic fever, your grandpaa was going to the Christian School that is in Volga. When your grandpaa was finally given permission by his doctor to go outside again to play, classes at the Christian School were finished for the year. Your grandpaa does not remember how long after he got sick with rheumatic fever that he had to rest and rest and rest – which meant that he had to stay in bed until the doctor would let him go outside again to play. Your grandpaa had to sleep downstairs during the weeks that he was recovering from having rheumatic fever. The doctor did not want your grandpaa climbing up and going down the steps to his upstairs bedroom. Your grandpaa remembers that he really did not care that he had to rest and rest and rest – having to stay in bed for weeks, because rheumatic fever can cause serious hurt to a kid’s heart if the kid does not rest. Your grandpaa did end up with a slight heart murmur.
Why do you think that kids get sick sometimes? Why do you think that God does not stop kids from getting sick? Do you think that God wants kids to be sick? Do you think that God really cares if kids get sick? Are you living in a perfect or imperfect world? If you believe that you are not living in a perfect world, why do you believe that? Do you know Who is in complete control of what happens on planet Earth? God is Who is in complete control of what happens on planet Earth. Do you know who is being allowed to rule over planet Earth? God is allowing Satan to rule over planet Earth. Why do you think that God is now allowing Satan to rule over planet Earth? Who would you say advocates for good? Who would you say advocates for evil? God – through God the Spirit, has the power to enforce good wherever and whenever He wants to enforce good on planet Earth. Satan – an angel who really thought that he could be like God, is now being given the chance by God to dig his own grave through what this evil former angel is now doing on planet Earth as he promotes and causes evil things to take place all around planet Earth. Once God had created everything that He wanted to create on planet Earth – which happened when God made a wife for the first guy who He created, God allowed a charismatic snake bring evil to planet Earth. This snake was Satan in disguise. Satan was given permission by God to . . . and evil began its task of destroying good on planet Earth. Once Satan had hoodwinked Adam through Eve, Satan and his cronies – who are fallen angels who had thought that Lucifer – who is now known as Satan, was the best, and malevolent spirits have been attacking guys, gals and kids everywhere on planet Earth by implanting evil thoughts in their hearts to do things that are bad, get them sick and have them die. Job probably lived about 4000 years ago on planet Earth. Job 2 explains what happened when God allowed Satan permission to attack a guy who walked faithfully with Him. It all began one day when Satan checked in with God. God asked Satan what he had been doing. Satan told God that he had been looking all over planet Earth for a guy to hassle – a guy who was faithfully living his life for Him because he believed Him. God suggested Job to Satan to . . . verse 3 recounts the conversation that God had with Satan, “Then the LORD said to Satan, ‘“Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil. And He still maintains his integrity, though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason.”’ God allowed Satan to cover Job from the top of his head to the soles of his feet with sores that hurt so much that Job while he sat in wood ashes would scrape the sores with a broken piece of pottery.
Is there something that happens or is done for you that makes you feel better when you are sick? Do you feel better when your dad and/or ma is with you when you are sick? After Job became sick and after his wife told him to curse God and die, Job had three friends spend time with him. Job’s three friends spent seven days and seven nights sitting on the ground near Job without saying anything because they saw that Job was hurting so bad. When your grandpaa was in the hospital in Volga with virus pneumonia, the pastor of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church that is in Volga visited your grandpaa and he gave your grandpaa a Bobbsey Twins book. Your grandpaa will never forget Rev. Cowie’s visit and the book that he gave your grandpaa. Rev. Cowie would a few years later become the pastor of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church that is located in Queens, New York. Your dad’s Aunt Becky attended this church in Queens when she was a kid and when Rev. Cowie was the pastor there. Rev. Cowie’s daughter’s name was Connie. Connie had a heart condition that caused her to tire quickly. Your grandpaa liked Connie’s name so . . .
Job 2 (362)