Is God punishing me?

Maybe you feel like ANOTHER snow is punishment! Not me, but maybe that’s you. 

Maybe it’s other times you wonder if the difficulties you face are God specifically punishing you for something you did or didn’t do. 

That’s always worth considering; we should always be eager to repent and grow whenever needed. But results take God‘s perfect timing. So the things we see happening right now aren’t always the result of something we’ve done. There was a lot going on behind the scenes in Job, and sadly lots of assumptions made. 

Job‬ ‭5‬:‭19‬-‭20‬ ‭says, “He shall deliver thee in six troubles: Yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee. In famine he shall redeem thee from death: And in war from the power of the sword.”

Eliphaz was convinced that God always immediately blesses those who follow God and immediately punishes those who don’t. That’s not in the Bible (or personal experience), and unfortunately Eliphaz uses his misunderstanding to judge and condemn Job. 

Are you going through a rough time right now? Have you asked God if there’s anything you need to change in your life? Have you asked God for the strength to keep going? 

And are you making sure you aren’t assuming you know everything that’s going on in someone else’s life? Maybe God isn’t punishing them, but there’s more going on behind the scenes.

So let’s pray more and assume less, for our own lives and for others. 

Today’s Bible reading is Job 5.