Thanksgiving, Job, and Suffering

2020 has been a long year. From the global pandemic that has raged through our world and claimed the lives of 250,000+ Americans, to the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and the nationwide protests that followed, and more recently to an election that divided our nation and set families and friends against each other. This has been one of the hardest years many of us have experienced. Just when things are starting to look up, something always seems to go wrong.

As Thanksgiving approaches, many of us are pondering what the holiday will look like this year. We aren’t just thinking about whether or not to gather for a traditional meal as COVID cases spike across the United States, we are also wondering what we even have to be thankful for. Some of us have lost loved ones to this disease, some have lost jobs, and others have lost their homes. Many are alone and feeling the loss of connection to their family, friends, or neighbors. Most days it doesn’t feel like there is much to be thankful for this year.

Is it possible to be thankful in the midst of suffering and misery? Or, an even tougher question — is it possible to be thankful for the suffering itself? As we contemplate this last question, let’s look at the story of Job from the Bible. Job was a man who was “blameless and upright”; he “feared God and shunned evil.” (Job 1:2) Because of his faithfulness, God had blessed him. He had a large family, many servants, and an abundance of livestock. But, one day Satan came to God with a proposal regarding Job. He claimed that Job only feared God because of what God had done for Job and how he had protected him. Satan claimed that if God would stretch out his hand and “strike everything he (Job) has, he will surely curse you to your face.” So, in chapter one, verse fifteen it says: “The LORD said to Satan, ‘Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.’ Then Satan went out from the presence of the LORD.”

The events that transpired next are shocking and saddening beyond belief. All of Job’s oxen and cattle were stolen and his servants who were guarding them were killed, save one. Fire from heaven came down and burnt up all of Job’s sheep and his servants who were with them, except for one. The Chaldeans stole all of his camels and killed all but one of his servants. All of his sons and daughters were killed in their older brother’s home when a wind swept through the desert and collapsed the house on top of them. Tragedy upon tragedy befell Job — all in one day.

So, what was Job’s response? Did he fall to the ground and curse God as Satan had predicted? No. Instead, he fell to the ground and said these words: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” Job’s first act after learning of the terrible tragedies that had befallen him that day was to worship God.

Job wasn’t perfect, however. Over the course of the book, he fights anger, bitterness, and resentment because of what God has allowed to happen to him. Things eventually turn around for Job, and God blesses him for his faithfulness to him, in spite of all he went through. After enduring much suffering, Job received more blessings from God than he had before.

When I thought about Thanksgiving this year, this first thing that came to mind was the story of Job. Here is someone who, over the course of a day, lost all that he had: his livestock, his servants, and his children. But, in the midst of all of this suffering and loss, the first thing Job did was fall to the ground and praise God. Honestly, if it was me, I wouldn’t have responded the same way Job did. I would have found it very hard to praise God in the midst of great suffering. Even today, it is hard to praise God during a time when we are separated from family and friends and facing many hardships.

One of the things that I particularly like about this biblical account of Job’s life is the realistic presentation of Job’s anger and fear. Yes, he praised God, but he also struggled over the course of the book with fear and anger. I appreciate this because it shows Job’s humanity. It shows that it is okay to be angry or afraid. What matters is how we respond to these emotions. Job chose to respond to these emotions in an unconventional way. Instead of letting fear and anger control him or allowing his suffering to rule his thoughts, Job used them to propel himself toward his Lord. As Laurie Nichols says in her article on Job and Thanksgiving: “His suffering lifts his eyes to his redeemer, and to a picture of the future that nearly (if not fully) leads him into a spirit of Thanksgiving. When all has been stripped away, still he has his Lord.”

As Christians, let us be thankful this Thanksgiving, even in the midst of our suffering. Let us not be ashamed if we are fearful or angry, but let us use these thoughts and emotions to propel us toward a closer communion with God and deeper sense of empathy towards those around us who are also going through the same things. After all, what hope does the world have if it looks at the church and our response to suffering and only sees anger, fear, and misery — but no hope? Suffering, fear, and pain are natural parts of life. The question is, how do we deal with them? Do we focus solely on them, or do we use them to propel us toward a closer union with God and a spirit of Thanksgiving no matter what the circumstances?