I just wanted to share something from the book of Job that the Lord has been showing me in my journey and healing.

The focused book this comes from is Job chapters 37 to 42, but if you are not familiar I recommend reading the entire book of Job to get a better understanding.

Now my impression of Job was generally that we should not be making judgments based  on what peoples’ lives look like from the outside. The Book of Job makes it clear that the negative circumstances Job faced were not because he was being punished and was considered “bad,” despite the many assumptions, accusations, and curses from people around him.

In reading Job this time around I feel like the Holy Spirit highlighted to me the relevance of pride (especially in the form of the Leviathan spirit) to Job’s situation.  Job had to overcome his own pride and on the other side unworthiness, but he had to overcome the pride of others. This came in the appearance of looking down upon Job as lower than him or beneath them.  Job had to fight both unworthiness internally as well as externally what was being projected on him by others.  Pride mixed with fear or uncertainty can look like unworthiness or insecurity. 

In reality, who we are has nothing to do with the blessings we have been given or what we do.  Even if Job had not been living in an upright state, the love God has for Him and the worth that He has are unchanged. Abundant blessings or lack are not any indication of your worth or how much God loves you.  Let me repeat,  Our worth is given to us by God the Father and Creator of All things, and the love that He has for us exists independent of anything we do, believe, or think. It is separate from our circumstances.  The only time it feels or appears this way is because you/we/I believe a lie from the enemy and put your belief in where your value comes from and your identity in something other than God. 

The love of God the Father is so constant.  His great love for you is so great and your value to Him is never changed!

SEE VERSES ABOUT HIS LOVE BELOW:

FORGIVENESS AND RESTORATION

So Job first had to overcome his own unworthiness, and insecurity mixed with pride.  The final step for Job in his restoration and recovery was forgiveness.  God helped to facilitate this for Job. No surprise there, because He always does it.  The final phase of recovery for Job was the forgiveness of those who cursed and accused him. Job forgave those that cursed him and through that God allowed for the restoration of those relationships with Job.  God did even more for Job and he restored Job to circumstances even greater before the enemy attacked him.

Recognition of our worth is essential to abide in Him, but unforgiveness of others is crucial to our recovery and healing.  This is especially true when it comes to others who may have introduced accusations into your life that you had allowed to take hold as beliefs.  We must know who we are in God and continually renew ourselves in the truth of that. It is also a continuous process of staying free of offense and offering up forgiveness, just as we are forgiven.

Romans 8:37-39 – No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Ephesians 2:4-5 – But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved

1 John 4:19 – We love because he first loved us.

John 15:13 – Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.

Jeremiah 31:3 – The Lord appeared to him from far away. I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.