ROCK-BOTTOM PRAISE: A LESSON FROM JOB
SARAH NWAFOR
When we hit rock-bottom, it is highly unlikely that our first reaction would be to break out in praise. However, one man in Scripture went against his human instinct and did just that. His name was Job.
Here was a man who had just received the most devastating news of his life. His perfect world had been ripped to shreds in a matter of minutes. He lost his sheep, oxen, servants, and even his precious children. He would eventually go on to lose his good health too. But Job 1:20 poignantly describes his reaction: “Job stood up and tore his robe in grief. Then he shaved his head and fell to the ground to worship” (NLT).
Job must have been utterly confused, with myriad questions swirling in his head: “Why? How? What if? … ” And yet, in his grief, confusion, and maybe even anger, he shaved his head and fell to the ground. Not to cry, pray, or ask questions (all these would come later), but to worship. He worshipped first.
In the next verse, Job demonstrated his understanding of God’s sovereignty: “He said, ‘I came naked from my mother’s womb, and I will be naked when I leave. The LORD gave me what I had, and the LORD has taken it away. Praise the name of the LORD!’” (Job 1:21 NLT). I consider those few sentences some of the most profound ever written.
Many would have considered his thanksgiving inappropriate, fake, or superficial. Was he praising God for the death of his children? However, when you revisit Job’s words with the help of the Holy-Spirit (like I did), you’ll discover a profound truth: this was no ordinary praise. It was spiritual. Job’s spirit had been naturally conditioned to praise God—a spontaneous process birthed from his complete surrender to the Almighty. Think of it as a spiritually engineered genetic mutation, if you will.
Even if all Job’s flesh wanted to do in that moment was collapse into an uncontrollable heap of tears, this conditioning in his spirit wouldn’t let him do so without thanking God first. This is what happens to everyone who is born again: your regenerated spirit becomes programmed to worship 24/7. It’s what we were created for; it’s what we will do forever on the other side of eternity. Thus, you must never stifle the gratitude that bubbles up and threatens to spill over in adverse circumstances.
Let’s dive deeper into Job’s words in that verse:
“I came naked from my mother’s womb”: Job recognised that he brought nothing into this world and that everything he acquired was a privilege, not his right.
“I will be naked when I leave”: Job knows that when he dies, he’ll be taking nothing with him—absolutely nothing. He was fine as long as he had the one thing that would matter after death: his relationship with God. This became abundantly clear when he refused to curse God later on.
“The Lord gave me what I had”: Job acknowledged God as the source of all that he had. Despite his wealth, children, servants, and reputation, God was his origin. No God; no Job.
“The Lord has taken away”: Job understood the sovereignty of God. He didn’t know the “why” but he knew the “Who.” He was content to know that the Lord saw it fit to let this happen (Job 2:10).
“Praise the name of the Lord”: Job thanked God for even allowing him to experience such abundance in the first place. He thanked His Creator for making him, blessing him with everything he had, and taking it away too. He even praised God for the future.
Now, let’s relate Job’s experience to ours. Have you been let go from a job you gave your best to? Has a loved one died despite your desperate pleas to God? Can you no longer use your legs? Has your health deteriorated, leaving you writhing in pain? Can your tears fill up the Atlantic Ocean? Maybe your family is facing a financial crisis, or your marriage has been rocked to the core with no hope of restoration. Are you about to take your final breath?
If so, then you’ve crashed into rock-bottom. Just like Job did. But you see, that cold, desolate floor of life’s trenches you’re currently on is the perfect place to thank God. It’s a state of complete surrender, where you know you have no ulterior motive for your thanksgiving. Your praise becomes bare and real because you can’t fake it in the valley of the shadow of death.
That’s what I love most about rock-bottom praise: it strips off the “why” and focuses your mind on the person of God. From within, your spiritual conditioning takes root, prompting words of adoration for your God to pour forth. You may not even understand why you’re able to praise in such situations. And thankfully, you don’t need to understand it; you just need to allow it.
Rock-bottom praise is spiritual. It is the natural state of a renewed spirit in Christ. And most importantly, it reveals God as the rock in your rock-bottom.
©Sarah Nwafor
One response
That’s what I love most about rock-bottom praise: it strips off the “why” and focuses your mind on the person of God.
Rock-bottom praise is spiritual. It is the natural state of a renewed spirit in Christ. And most importantly, it reveals God as the rock in your rock-bottom.
This is so profound! With Jesus in my boat, I can smile at the storm!