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DAY 136, or May the sixteenth.

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No one is immune to bad things.

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Our thoughts today are from Job chapter 2 verse 11.

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When Job's three friends, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite,

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heard about all the troubles that had come upon him, they set out from their homes and

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met together by agreement to go and sympathize with him and comfort him.

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Another big picture surrounding this verse.

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We take a big step backwards as we begin to consider the book of Job.

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The previous seventeen books of the Bible are the history of God's people, the Jews,

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from creation to their downfall and exile in a foreign land.

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Today we are looking at a book that many scholars believe to be the oldest in the whole Bible.

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And which probably falls in between Genesis chapters 11 and 12, if we think in date order.

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Job addresses the age-old problem of why good people suffer, and at the same time wicked

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people thrive.

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The story line begins with a jaw-dropping conversation between God and Satan.

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Before putting this down as an obvious fictional tale, we need to remember that Jesus had personal

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encounters with the devil when he was here on earth.

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So Jesus himself confirms the idea of an individual devil.

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God gives Satan permission to attack Job, but forbids his death.

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Job finds these attacks hard to bear, and wishes he had never been born.

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And now today's action step.

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Job's three friends come from different places and cultures, but they agreed to visit Job

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in order to sympathize with him and comfort him.

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It all went well until they started speaking.

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When we want to comfort a friend in time of trouble, often the worst thing we can do is

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to give them the benefit of our wise counsel.

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Usually just being there is enough.

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Giving the correct answers is all too often counterproductive, as they probably know them

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already.

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A warm touch or an encouraging nod can be far more helpful.

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Remember this when you next try to sympathize with someone.