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Unchanging love

11 Kings of the earth and all people: princes and all judges of the earth; 12  both young men and maidens, old men and children, 13 let them praise The Name of The Lord, for His Name alone is exalted. His Glory is above the earth and heaven (Psalm 148).

How we express love and honor for a loved one will differ from others. We love our children more than we love our nieces and nephews; we honor our spouses much differently than our friends or siblings. There are those we love and those we adore. When it comes to our adoration for someone, there’s no question they hold a special place in our lives—our love is unwavering. Regardless of what we go through, we are bound by an unbroken union and steadfast love.

“Adore The One Who Loves you more than anyone else.”

18 While he was still speaking, another also came and said, “Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, 19 and suddenly a great wind came from across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell on the young people, and they are dead; and I alone have escaped to tell you!” 20 Then Job arose, tore his robe, and shaved his head; and he fell to the ground and worshiped. 21 And he said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and The Lord has taken away. Blessed be The Name of The Lord.” 22 In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong (Job 1).

Job was a man who was upright and righteous in his time. He would offer God sacrifices for each of his seven sons after they caroused; peradventure they may have cursed God in their revelry. Satan approached God with a request—challenge Job’s faithfulness to God. He posited that Job was faithful to God, because he was blessed and protected. So God allowed Satan to take away what was dear to Job, but to not lay a hand on him. In one day, Job lost his wealth and children. Yet, he still worshiped God. 

God deserves our highest adoration. He gives us our loved ones, forgives us, loves us, and blesses our lives with many good things. This level of adoration we see in Job didn’t come from all the good things God did for him. No. It came from the knowledge of Who God is. Adoration isn’t based on what God does, but Who He is. So whether He gives or takes, it doesn’t change Who God is—He is Love. We don’t adore others because of what they give us, but who they are. We love and respect those who are caring, loving and dependable. But unlike others, God doesn’t make mistakes, or fail us. At best, He is always the same, our Loving Father. 

Job understood that apart from God’s Goodness, he was destitute: He didn’t own anything, not even his children; they all belonged to God. God gives and takes away, because it is all His to give as He pleases. So as Job, we are to worship in loss, pain, and sorrow. We should adore God and bless His Name, because He gave, in the first place. He is fully acquainted with every aspect of our lives, because He is the Giver of life, and everything pertaining to it.

In all circumstances, do not sin by complaining. Let God know how hurt and disappointed you are by the trials you face; but do so in reverence and worship. He is the only refuge that will not fail you. So why not worship with the confidence we have in Him? What expectation do you have of God in trying times? He is Loving, Merciful and Faithful. Adore The One Who Loves you more than anyone. He can’t help but be Who He is, and that is why we adore Him. God will not go against His Character. For Job and us, when adversity comes, our loyalty will be tested. Is it God we love more? or people and stuff? Anyone who feels pressed to choose has not fully been convinced of Who God is. 

“Adoration isn’t based on what God does, but Who He is.”

10  But He knows the way that I take; When He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold. 11  My foot has held fast to His steps; I have kept His Way and not turned aside. 12  I have not departed from the Commandment of His Lips; I have treasured the Words of His Mouth, more than my necessary food. 13  “But He is unique, and who can make Him change? And whatever His Soul desires, that He does. 14  For He performs what is appointed for me, and many such things are with Him (Job 23).”

Though at times Job felt like he should have never been born to see his fate, disquieted by his suffering, he chose to refocus his attention to a positive outcome. Job’s friends were of little to no comfort. They accused him of bringing misfortune on himself, because they believed he had sinned against God. Job was at a low ebb and had no one; not even his wife offered him solace. He meditated on the perfection of God—His Wisdom and Perfect Will. Job zeroed in on what God was going to do in his life, knowing that God would perform what He desired. Would a Loving God desire to harm us, when we are in the doldrums?

God will refine us in the furnace of affliction. He will remove the dross—the attributes that defile us, if and only if we hang on every Word He instructs us to do. His Words are more valuable than the short-lived pleasures that slightly comfort and then fizzle out. We esteem the words of those we adore as valuable. With our ears perked up, we should tune out all the negative thoughts of our heart and relish every Word God speaks to us. Whatever He has appointed for us, in the place of adversity, He will perform it according to His desire for us. But we must see what we can become in the Hands of our Creator—refined like gold. 

21 Tell and bring forth your case; Yes, let them take counsel together. Who has declared this from ancient times? Who has told it from that time? Have not I, The Lord? And there is no other God besides Me, A Just God and A Savior; There is none besides Me. 22  “Look to Me, and be saved, all you ends of the earth! For I Am God, and there is no other. 23  I have sworn by Myself; The Word has gone out of My Mouth in righteousness, and shall not return; that to Me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall take an oath (Isaiah 45).“

“We esteem the words of those we adore as valuable.”

Bring your case before the Lord because He is Just. Wear your heart on your sleeves, and don’t hold back on how you truly feel. He will listen and will answer in righteousness. He will not answer in anger. He will save those who look to Him for deliverance; He is The Savior. Adore on your knees, before the only True God. Train your tongue to declare your reverence and awe for God, in the good and bad times. Though we may not understand our circumstances, He does. He knows the end from the beginning, and He is unmatched in Power and Wisdom. 

Now is a good time as any to adore The Lord. If we can’t adore Him in the trials and afflictions, we will be hard-pressed to do so when things are peachy. When we worship Him in uncertain times, we profess our devotion to Him. He is worthy of the highest praise, because He will not fail us. He gives and takes away; He does what He desires for us according to His Love and Purpose.

Those who adore in pain and afflictions, are those who love God at all times. No matter what happens, we can still trust that His Character will not betray us. God is unmatched in perfection. Rest assured that in every place we set our feet; in every situation we find ourselves, He is Good and worth our adoration. We can choose to adore Him, or cast aspersions on His motives. Loyalty is put to the test in unsettling times—a wilderness place, if you will. Who we listen to during those moments will influence our thinking and attitude. We can choose to be bitter, bewail our inadequacies, or we can cling to God, and be receptive to what He can do. If we adore Him, we will submit to Him, and keep ourselves from the temptation to disobey and sin. Don’t give the Enemy an opportunity to use your trials to create a rift between you and God.

“Now is a good time as any to adore The Lord.”

6 Oh come, let us worship and bow down; Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker. 7 For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, and the sheep of His Hand. Today, if you will hear His Voice: 8 “Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion, as in the day of trial in the wilderness, 9 when your fathers tested Me; They tried Me, though they saw My work (Psalm 95).“