The theme for today is: Restoration

Today’s devotional comes from ‘Today in the Word’ and is entitled ‘The Lord Restores.’

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In the final chapter of the book of Job, the Lord turned His attention to Job’s three friends. They were wrong to accuse Job of having unconfessed sin in his life. They had spoken incorrectly about God’s reasons for Job’s loss and pain, and the Lord was angry about their misrepresentation of Him (v. 7).

God demonstrated grace to them by having them offer sacrifices and having Job pray for them (v. 8). What is of note here is that “the LORD accepted Job’s prayer” (v. 9). It doesn’t mention that He accepted their sacrifices. This reaffirms Job as a man of integrity. After all the criticism and lack of compassion he received from these men, he was still willing to pray for their welfare.

The Lord blessed Job and more than restored all that he had lost. He lived for another 140 years and was able to see several generations of children. As we sat with Job we felt his pain, his loss, his heartache, and his frustration. Yet through it all, he continued to seek God for his answers. Because of his great faith, his epitaph is very similar to two other patriarchs of faith, Abraham (Gen. 25:8) and Isaac (Gen. 35:29).

Through Job’s debate with his friends, we discovered that he understood something about the need for an Arbitrator (9:32–35), an Advocate and Intercessor (16:19–22), a Redeemer (19:25), the certainty of the Resurrection (19:26-27), and what it meant to walk with God (29:2–6).

Because we sat with Job through the pain, we rejoice with him in his restoration! Job was not perfect, but he continually sought God. He’s an example of someone who trusted God, although he didn’t understand the reason for his unfavorable circumstances. May we also trust God when the direction of our faith journey takes an unexpected turn.

Today’s Updates:

Zach has had another busy week of treatments and therapies. He did pretty well overall, but is still very tired in the mornings and throughout the day.

Zach got his new trial wheelchair on Wednesday! This wheelchair is fitted to Zach’s measurements a bit better, but will still need a few adjustments in the coming days to ensure that Zach is comfortable and able to do some activities while in the wheelchair, like using an iPad. Please pray that Zach’s new chair will work well for him and that it will be comfortable and practical for him.

Zach was cleared to have broth with his tube feed meals as of Thursday! We are so thankful for this step in Zach’s recovery. He has been enjoying the broth and swallowing it very well. Please join us in thanking God that Zach is able to enjoy some food again. Pray that God will continue to heal Zach and allow him to eat and drink more in the coming weeks and months.

Speech therapy has had to switch their approach a bit with getting Zach to communicate. He had been using “yes” and “no” buttons, which worked well for a while, but he started only selecting the “yes” and refusing to press the “no” over the past week or so. Speech therapy’s new approach is to present him with a couple of options to choose from instead, which is more likely to produce a clear answer. They are also working on getting Zach to form words with his mouth to indicate what he wants, but this can be very difficult for Zach. Please pray that Zach’s communication will improve. Pray that we will be able to understand what he is trying to communicate, and that he will be willing to work with different forms of communication. Pray that God will restore Zach’s ability to speak again if that is His will.

Thank you for keeping up with the updates on Zach’s health and progress. Please continue to pray for him. Pray that God will restore his brain and body. Pray that Zach will have the strength and energy he needs for all his therapy sessions. Pray that he will be able to communicate more every day, and pray for patience for Zach as he waits for healing and progress. Have a blessed Sunday.

“After the Lord had spoken these words to Job, the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite: “My anger burns against you and against your two friends, for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. Now therefore take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer up a burnt offering for yourselves. And my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept his prayer not to deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.” So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did what the Lord had told them, and the Lordaccepted Job’s prayer.

And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends. And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. Then came to him all his brothers and sisters and all who had known him before, and ate bread with him in his house. And they showed him sympathy and comforted him for all the evil[a]that the Lord had brought upon him. And each of them gave him a piece of money and a ring of gold.

And the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. And he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys. He had also seven sons and three daughters. And he called the name of the first daughter Jemimah, and the name of the second Keziah, and the name of the third Keren-happuch. And in all the land there were no women so beautiful as Job’s daughters. And their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers. And after this Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons, four generations. And Job died, an old man, and full of days.”

(Job 42:7-17)