By Erin Bird
Let's jump back into Job 38. This week, we come to verses 16-18, which say...
16 Have you entered into the springs of the sea,
or walked in the recesses of the deep?
17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you,
or have you seen the gates of deep darkness?
18 Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth?
Declare, if you know all this.
(Job 38:16-18 ESV)
God sounds like He's copping a bit of an attitude here, getting a bit feisty with Job, mocking him for not being as great as He is. But God isn't mocking Job - rather He's giving Job perspective.
Longtime Baltimore Orioles baseball manager, Earl Weaver, had a rule that a player couldn't steal a base unless given the sign to steal. All-Star Reggie Jackson felt this was unfair as he felt like he knew most of the pitchers and catchers of opposing teams and knew who he could and could not steal on. So after getting a single, Jackson decided to steal second even though he wasn't given the sign. He easily took second, flashing a big grin to the dugout as if to say, "See, I know what I am doing!"
But after the game, Weaver pulled Jackson aside and explained why Jackson shouldn't have stolen second. Because batting behind Jackson was one of Baltimore's power hitters. But by Jackson taking second, first base was left open. As a result, the opposing pitcher intentionally walked the power hitter because the next batter was in a slump. The pitcher was hoping to induce a double play to end the inning. So as not to waste two men on base, Weaver felt forced to put in a pinch hitter for the batter in the slump, thus reducing the players available for later in the game.
When Reggie Jackson stole second, he had only been thinking about himself. He wasn't thinking like a manager who was thinking about the entire game. Earl Weaver brought years of experience to the game, and with that experience came knowledge and perspective that Jackson lacked.
Like Jackson, so often all we can see is our current situation. Right now, many of us...
But if we realize through Job 38:16-18 that God not only sees the depths of the sea, knows the gates of death, and can comprehend the expanse of the earth, but can also see eternity past and eternity future, it means He possesses the knowledge and perspective of what life will look like tomorrow.And so may you rest in the truth that God possesses the knowledge of what is next, and because He has a greater perspective than us, He knows how He will carry you through these days into the next chapter.
So trust Him, resting in His unfathomable knowledge.
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