Children are always perplexed when bad things happen to good people. "Mommy, why did Jerry get hit by a car? Why did daddy lose his job? Why did you get cancer?" When bad things happen to good people, we risk losing our faith in God, in the goodness of the world, and in our own power to create positive change. The Biblical story of Job is one of the most heart-wrenching tales of the Old Testament and perhaps the book that modern readers can relate to the most. Stephen Mitchell's translation offers modern readers even more opportunities to reflect on the meanings of Job's profound predicament. Because Job's story is about friendship and faith, modern readers can apply its lessons to their daily lives.

A often wondered why some friends fail to past the test of trustworthiness and others go out of their way to help. Now I can see that like Job, I cannot control how other people react to the pain and suffering of others. Instead, I need to ask myself how I can trust myself and my spiritual connections more deeply through my suffering. Job's pain is so palpable that it overwhelms anything I have ever experienced personally. Moreover, reading Job raises questions about our expectations of other people and of God. To expect that our friends will always be there for us may not be realistic. Similarly, God purposely tests Job so that he may deepen his understanding, his faith, and his essential...

Job's tears are the tears of all humanity. Eventually all human beings experience pain and suffering such as through the loss of a loved one, financial straits, or illness. Those who experience pain themselves are far more likely to weep with others and with Job. When we feel that we cannot count on God or on other human beings, our humanity may be We can never really count on other human beings to ease our pain. Reflecting on Job's sense of despair and social isolation, I have vowed to myself to never be a fair weather friend. In fact, I can see now that being shunned in a time of need has made me even more likely to be loyal to the people I care about.
Ironically the people we least expect to end up being the greatest friends. The kid who seemed to like me the least was the one that turned out to be my best friend. Till this day we are good friends, whereas the people who didn't return my phone calls and who fell out of touch are the ones who I expected to come through for me. The Book of Job shows that personal suffering can reveal the best in human beings. Suffering can also lead to spiritual triumph. Suffering characterizes human life, enables us to develop trustworthiness, honesty, and integrity in our social lives. These are the most important lessons we can learn and when I am forced to question why bad things happen to good people I will re-read the Book of Job.