Daily Devotion

“The most overwhelming losses of my life, those that I feared most, have in fact been "far outweighed by the gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." I can never prove it to anybody. … I only know that it is true and would say so with all my heart to others who, desiring to know Christ in all His fullness … yet fear loss. Do not be afraid. Do not be afraid. The gain will outweigh everything.”

Elisabeth Elliot · Discipline: The Glad Surrender

Scripture

Job 1:21 Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return. The Lord gives and the Lord takes away; blessed be the name of the Lord.

Reflection

Job 1:21 reminds me that everything in this world—wealth, achievements, health, family warmth—is a gift from God, and He has the right to take it away. We often think that what we possess is ours, until disaster suddenly strikes, and we realize that everything was only a temporary entrustment. Loss is painful, but it can also awaken us: our roots cannot be in the earth, but in eternity. May I be humble in good times and trusting in adversity, learning to be like Job, praising the name of the Lord even in the face of storms.