I open up webpages this morning to see what is going on in this world of ours… and srart swearing. Firstly Sunshine Mary enlightened us on Freaky Friday about transgender breast feeding. Then I look in the Herald and find again that they have gone to the most Liberal Presbyterians and Anglicans for justification of Same sex marriage, painting the Catholics (who are teaching what the Bible says here) as out of date.

But all this is the talk of intellectual cowards. Wimps. Complaining about the state being unfair on things that are not small, but not big either. If you choose to live as gay or transgender — for there are many people who have similar feelings and choose not to act upon them — then you have clear instructions, from the beginning, that this is not correct and not Christian. These acts were condemned by the Didache and the church fathers, despite being common, so common that they were attributed to the Pagan Pantheon.

It is hard to live celibate when out of marriage, But harder still is when you are oppressed, hurt, suffering, in pain, and shunned. The issue of homosexuals wanting a marriage ceremony is — provided the church can say no — a sign of our rejection of natural law and God. But suffering, severe suffering, affects us all.

Job 3:1-26

1After this Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth. 2Job said: 3″Let the day perish in which I was born, and the night that said, ‘A man-child is conceived.’ 4Let that day be darkness! May God above not seek it, or light shine on it. 5Let gloom and deep darkness claim it. Let clouds settle upon it; let the blackness of the day terrify it. 6That night – let thick darkness seize it! let it not rejoice among the days of the year; let it not come into the number of the months. 7Yes, let that night be barren; let no joyful cry be heard in it. 8Let those curse it who curse the Sea, those who are skilled to rouse up Leviathan. 9Let the stars of its dawn be dark; let it hope for light, but have none; may it not see the eyelids of the morning – 10because it did not shut the doors of my mother’s womb, and hide trouble from my eyes. 11″Why did I not die at birth, come forth from the womb and expire? 12Why were there knees to receive me, or breasts for me to suck? 13Now I would be lying down and quiet; I would be asleep; then I would be at rest 14with kings and counselors of the earth who rebuild ruins for themselves, 15or with princes who have gold, who fill their houses with silver. 16Or why was I not buried like a stillborn child, like an infant that never sees the light? 17There the wicked cease from troubling, and there the weary are at rest. 18There the prisoners are at ease together; they do not hear the voice of the taskmaster. 19The small and the great are there, and the slaves are free from their masters.

20″Why is light given to one in misery, and life to the bitter in soul, 21who long for death, but it does not come, and dig for it more than for hidden treasures; 22who rejoice exceedingly, and are glad when they find the grave? 23Why is light given to one who cannot see the way, whom God has fenced in? 24For my sighing comes like my bread, and my groanings are poured out like water. 25Truly the thing that I fear comes upon me, and what I dread befalls me. 26I am not at ease, nor am I quiet; I have no rest; but trouble comes.”

The trouble is someone from the Exit society would say that this is a reason to euthanize. Others would suggest that this is clear depression, and suggest a remedy. A third group would say that this is unChristian(TM) and that you should be happy and prosperous.

The ancients would have offered him a knife. There is also a hint that the pagan practice of exposure of infants existed — there were no knees to receive or breasts to suck many children who were instead left on mountains.

But the church and the rabbis consider him a hero of the faith. Not because he succeeded — he did not, but because he stood. He maintained his integrity. He said the truth — he had done nothing wrong. And he said out loud what he was feeling.

In faith, knowing that our redeemer lives and in our flesh we will see God (Job 19:25) we can hang on. In despair. Rejected by all. Forced to go our own way because our wife has told us to curse God, die, and then removed herself from our presence. We will not look beautiful. We will not be happy, and full of joy. We will have times of deep suffering and despair.

But we will not, praise God, be liffle wimpy special snowflakes.