As a teenager and a young adult, I loved the music of the Beatles and the song “Yesterday” was something to which I could relate. I believe Job would have been a Beatles fan, as well, since in Chapter’s 29 and 30, he repeats many of the same feelings the song describes. Therefore, I realize I could substitute anyone’s name for Job’s in these Scripture verses since Job says exactly what we would say when finding our world turned upside down by a radical change in our circumstances. Job begins by saying he longs for the way things were yesterday. Yesterday was the day everything was going along as usual. Today, everything has changed. Yes, we can relate because we have experienced radical changes to our lives, too. Maybe it’s a change in our health, or a substantial loss of our finances or how about when we’ve had a job loss or a death within our family; don’t we say the same things? We long for yesterday. We long for the days when we felt close to God, when we were aware of his blessings, we felt love and life just seemed right. But today I hurt, today God seems distant, today I’m overwhelmed by the circumstance in which I find myself.
Where do I go, to whom do I turn when I am out of control? The hymn written by Billy Sherrill and Glenn Sutton says it so clearly:
“Where could I go, oh where could I go?
Seeking a refuge for my soul
Needing a friend, to help me in the end
Where could I go, but to the Lord?”
Jesus Christ is our “go to” friend; only he knows our circumstances and our needs. May we always be aware of our need to go to our Lord, in good times and in bad.
David Blythe, Lenoir, N.C.
