I’ve reached that point in a bad cold where my nose feels better, but my throat is itchy and on the verge of a cough. Yet this yucky feeling is a mere scratch compared to what Job experienced in the deep valley of his life.

Despite the fact that his “friends” kept telling him that he must have been wicked indeed to deserve all the calamity, Job takes comfort from the fact that God still lives.

From chapter 18:
“Still, I know that God lives—the One who gives me back my life—
and eventually he’ll take his stand on earth.
And I’ll see him—even though I get skinned alive!—
see God myself, with my very own eyes.
Oh, how I long for that day! ”

When I’m in the middle of a valley or a desert…when my husband is on the road traveling for business and I’m lonesome…when my homeschooling efforts fall flat…when I’m in the throes of a panic attack and the chest pain squeezes so tightly that I can’t catch my breath…

God still lives.

He is always present.

The very thought of this constant characteristic of my Creator makes me want to bow down in worship and gratitude. Now stop whatever you are doing and listen for a moment. The word Job used for “God” is ga’al. This word is translated:

My redeemer

But wait! There’s more!
The phrase translated “takes his stand” also means:
To arise.

The remainder of those verses just gives me chills. Way back in the beginning of time, God gave Job a view of the end of time that sounds very similar to what we learn about our eternal life with Jesus:

Even though his skin will be consumed by worms…he knows that one day he will literally see (perceive) God.

And so will we who believe in the Son.

We sing this song in our church on occasion, and it fills me with joyful expectation every time! It reminds me of Job’s words: God Lives.