This year has sometimes felt as though we are living through a second pandemic. We thought at this time last year that we were nearly done with Covid, that summer and the arrival of vaccines in the new year would return everything to normal. Then along came Delta and we were thrust once more back into the anxiety and isolation of extended lockdowns that we are only just emerging from. The future still feels uncertain. This second year of the pandemic has been much harder to live through for many as the virus and the lockdowns have taken a significant toll on our physical, mental and spiritual health. Where has God been through this time of suffering and loss?
This question lies at the heart of the book of Job. Where is God in the midst of suffering? Although this book is often bleak, the last few chapters suggest that God is with us in our darkest despair and in our pain – even though, like Job, we may not always be aware of God’s presence. God does eventually break the silence and speak to Job, restores him to health and blesses him.
Our lives may not always come to such a happy ending as the book of Job, but along with Job we can be comforted when we recognise God’s power, justice and love at work in the world and in our lives. God never explains the cause of Job’s suffering, however, which remains a mystery. So too we may never know the cause of suffering in our lives but we can take solace from Job’s experience that God does hear our cries, does care and does want to have relationship with us.