Last Sunday I had the privilege of speaking at Temple Baptist Church, just up the street from Heritage. The lead pastor at Temple, Jon Stairs, is both a friend and colleague (he co-teaches a preaching course with me).
In their Sunday services, the church is working through the book of Job right now. Jon asked me to preach a sermon from chapters 8 and 9. In these chapters we listen and hear Bildad (Job’s friend) and Job try to make sense of suffering.
Making sense of suffering has proven to be a challenge for many over the years. In my sermon, I mention the story of Dr. Gerald Sittser. His mother, wife, and daughter were all killed when a drunk driver slammed into the minivan he was driving. Three years after the tragic accident, Dr. Sittser wrote down his reflections in a thoughtful book called A Grace Disguised. In his book he tries to make sense of his suffering
Right now, our world is going through convulsions on an international scale. At the same time, we struggle with the suffering that invades our lives on a personal level. It can be hard to make sense of it all.
In Job 9, we hear Job try to make sense of his suffering and listen as he draws three conclusions.
If you wonder and wrestle with the problem of suffering, I’d invite you to listen to the sermon. (You can listen to it or download it below)
I’d also recommend Dr. Sittser’s book as an additional resource.
Rick and Linda Reed 