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THE SEASON OF JOB

16/07/2020 08:15:00 Bandiswa Vilane

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It is both a shame and adversity that it is not only the world that has changed, but it has also successfully changed us in its resolutions.

The cost has been far past external. Many have lost their jobs and livelihoods, and many are still going to lose their jobs at the turn of events and the impact they have had in our economy. A lot of aspects in the world have been shaken and are bound to never be the same. This has shown us that there lies a great truth and not just a misconception that where there is a problem externally, there is one internally too.

Defying

The world at large continues to move, defying the myth that being yourself is simply the best way to let the world catch up to you and we are experiencing the lesson first hand. The world cares less about our broken wings; that we do not exist for it to be there but it exists for us to be sustained and so when we fall it keeps moving. This is the biggest lie we have been told; that time is not a representation clock of our achievements and yet in 2020 we all seem to be delayed. We are delayed because we feel as though we have missed time, that we cannot recover from the pandemic and that it’s almost impossible and pointless to start over so we are all waiting until the perfect time comes; until the economists stand before us and tell us that the economy is stable. The effects have been far more beyond the job losses and the economic trough. Our humanity has been affected, we have stopped seeing each other as human beings trying to make a living and make it out alive in such difficult times.

Defines

When one loses something, they believe it defines their role in society. Science has explained that they tend to believe they are as good as someone with nothing left to lose. As a result, some people project this pain and suffering to those around them. When in adversity we want to believe everything is gone and we bargain with the most important things we have left – our values. We forget that these same values exist to help us keep the time we believe we have lost. Kindness can regain you what time has taken. It is a simple act of kindness to a stranger that can get you a job interview to a job beyond what you have been applying for. It is these attributes that we sell for bitterness that stand to remind us of what is truly valuable.

With the understanding of this, it is definite that at large we possessed far much of everything that was of no value. We hate the woman trying to sell avocados for a price above what we deem worthy because our ability to see with wisdom is skewed. We see an opportunist trying to make money out of us in a time where finances are a strain. We fail to look around us and see a mirror, we fail to look and see an image of us trying to make ends meet in a place that does not care for our struggles. This is the humility and kindness we have lost when we needed it the most.

Insight

We are in what I call ‘the season of Job’ and this is a season of loss and gain. To give insight, Job is a man in the Bible who had everything in one day and had nothing the next, from wealth to his children. A season of Job is the one that teaches us perspective, that gives us the most important thing and that is our identity. We have identified ourselves by what we do and by our habits. Our identity is lost in the most meaningless things and no matter the amount of money or wealth we possess, we are simply incomplete until we place our identity in the right place and that is in our Creator.

The season of Job takes everything we value, it takes away everything we prioritize, and it takes away everything we use to identify ourselves. And the only way to thrive through this season is to introspect and ask yourself what have you truly lost? To regain it is simple; we must go to the manufacturer and get installed the right software. That is the software that is filled with love, compassion, faith, hope and all the values that reflect the image in which we were created. Moreover, this is a season of redemption and an opportunity to do yourself justice. There is nothing left to lose in trying, all the odds lead towards taking a step in one direction and your story will be one that redefines the culture of time.