A Biblical Exploration of Mental Health: Job

Third article in a series by Tom Fairman

Job

Our friend's daughter was a clever, popular girl in primary school, who was looking forward to the challenge of Secondary school. However when she started her new school, she began to develop an issue with food. She stopped wanting to eat and started to lose weight. She could not bring herself to consume what was needed to and began to change mentally as well as physically. She was referred to hospital to have support and seemed to make a good recovery. Unfortunately, despite an improvement for some time, the issues began to resurface and came back with more force. The situation deteriorated until she was sectioned and admitted to a specialist unit, along with other young people who were suffering in the same way. 

The unit sometimes would have to resort to force feeding some patients for their own health. Within the unit, there was a solidarity amongst the patients, but not a positive one. There was a change in her when she was with them and their presence created a spiral of negativity, using their conditions as a way of gaining status with each other, urging each other into greater depths of illness. Finally, she was removed from this environment to recover at home and with the love and support of her family, she is beginning to make steps in the right direction. 

Job was an upright man, held in high esteem amongst his peers. (Job 1:1) He looked after the poor, clothed the naked, feed the hungry and helped the widow. His respect for every person was more than skin deep and people came to him for advice, they listened when he spoke and sought out his wisdom (Job 29:7-17). He was blessed with a large family whom he loved. He supported them in their endeavours, but also supported them spiritually through prayer and sacrifice (Job 1:5.) On top of all of this, he was blessed with wealth in terms of property and resources and all considered him to have the favour of God. (Job 1:3) God Himself calls him a good and holy man. (Job 1:8)

Then one of life's storms hits Job hard. His property is lost to thieves from foreign countries or burned to the ground. His children are all killed and he is left with nothing (Job 1:13-19). This is a tempest of a storm that strikes in so many places. In our lives we know that losing our house, our jobs or having to endure the death of a child is heart-wrenchingly difficult, but to have it all happen at once would be enough to break the strongest of us. Yet Job does not lose heart, or his faith or his mind (Job 1:22). He endures until the next disaster attacks his health, leaving him in constant pain and torment, with death seemingly close and yet distant at the same time. It is often said as a comfort that at least you have your health, but in this moment Job has lost everything.

The difficulty these events place on us when they occur cannot be overstated. Often we try to hide how much they are hurting us and do not let on until the issue has been resolved. Sometimes we are blessed with the freedom from depression in these times, but it can feel like a lottery as to whether we will break under the strain. It does not seem to matter whether we have a strong faith, with good support or not, when suffering happens, it is the random nature of it that seems so unfair. We become critics and say that so and so did not deserve it, but then think of others who maybe get away with too much and need to be taken down a peg or two. In Biblical language, it seems as though the wicked are left free to roam the earth, while the just man suffers.

It is from this point that our human desire for understanding becomes a hindrance to our well being. We are designed to look for meaning, to make a narrative out of any situation and so when suffering occurs in our lives, we look for the reasons within ourselves. We begin to dig up past wrongs or mistakes that should be long forgotten, we create buckets of shame to pour on ourselves to add to our woes. We imagine that we are being punished because the idea of suffering happening at random does not seem fair. This means we push ourselves further down into the abyss, we are always are harshest critics and in those moments believe we are getting what we deserve. Everything seems to loom over us and the shadow grows and blocks out the light even more.

x1952-391, Job and His Three Friends , Artist: Tissot, Photographer: Richard Goodbody, Photo © The Jewish Museum, New York

It is in this moment that his friends find Job, sitting in his suffering, in his mental anguish. They come from all over the country to help him, remembering what he has done for them and they sit with him for seven days and nights, not saying a word (Job 2:13). They come to be there in solidarity with their friend, to show him support by their presence, to be at his side in this dark time. In these moments it is all that we can seem to do. As we sit by the side of a loved one who has retreated into themselves, or by their bed as they lie being treated in a hospital, or as they push us away, sinking deeper into the darkness, we wait with them, hoping our presence will be an anchor and a lighthouse as the storm rages.

There are words we want to say, but cannot get them out. Even if we do, they never seem to convey the right meaning, so we wait. We wait for the time when they will come to us, when they will open their eyes and reach out their hand for us. We wait for their mouths to be opened and their hearts to be poured forth. We wait because deep cries out to deep and the depth of love in us stretches out for the love that is buried deep inside of them. We wait because we love them and this is all we seem to be able to do in these moments. For Job, this is what he needed. He needed someone to be there for him when he was ready to talk, whether it took seven days or seventy seven days. He did not flee from their presence, but allowed them to rest by him as his anguish blew within him. Then he spoke (Job 3:1).

There can feel like a great pressure is upon us in these moments when we have the awe-filled privilege of having someone open up to us. Will we have the answers to the questions they ask? Will we be able to give the right advice to solve their problems? Perhaps that is why we do not create these spaces to talk to one another. Perhaps we fear the silence and the breaking of it and so never create the space to wait with each other. Perhaps that is why we hide in the busyness of life for fear of being called upon or having to call upon someone else. Perhaps we believe the lie that we cannot burden someone else with our problems as it is not fair on them. Perhaps we are just scared of connecting deeply with someone else, fearful of that awe-filled moment.

Yet without these moments healing can never come. Whether they are the start or somewhere on the journey, we need to open up with each other, speak to each other. For Job, this began as a torrent of complaints against the injustice he has been dealt. He needed someone to be there to listen, to hear the cry of his heart, to hear him rallying against the storm. He did not need answers for his questions were all addressed to God, he only needed an ear to hear his words and a heart to hear his pain. This is the role that we can all play, for to listen only requires that we stop and do nothing, that we sit and be in the presence of another.

However, as the presence of the successful counselling industry shows, we are not very good at this. Sometimes we need a professional to lead us in the journey, but most of the time we are hamstrung by our need to be useful and provide reasons and solutions. For Job, it started with his wife who told him to curse God and die (Job 2:9), believing that this was the ultimate end anyway and so why prolong the suffering. This sad example is unfortunately mirrored in a lot of ways today with the assisted suicide clinics and social media echo chambers, giving volume to these dark thoughts. It is a dangerous place to live with the notion of death as the only end and when life is without hope, the spiral can be very quick indeed. Job holds onto his hope that he will be vindicated, whether in this life or the next (Job 32:1) and we can only pray this life belt is with those who are suffering in these moments.

The rest of Job's friends however have more altruistic motives. They do truly want to help and want to find the reason for Job's suffering, believing if they find it, they can suggest a cure. With mental health, the search for a reason can be very painful and can sometimes be counter-productive. There can be no rhyme or reason as to why these situations occur and to create one can worsen the situation. Job's friends have decided that the reason for Job's suffering is that he must have done something wrong (Job 4:8). It fitted with their world view that God only punishes the wicked so Job must be wicked and needed to repent. If we look honestly at ourselves, we can see this in some of our thinking at times and we place ourselves as judges over our neighbour who is suffering. 

Even when we believe we are doing the right thing, we can be making the storm clouds grow bigger. Comments such as "chin up", "get over it" and less so nowadays, but "man up" seem to be helpful advice, which after given make us feel like we have helped. When they have no effect, we shrug our shoulders and say well you need to try harder, go for a walk, eat healthy, stop doing that or this. All of which is good advice, but in the wrong moment it is harmful because we are not doing what we are supposed to which is nothing at all, but listen. The Be Kind mantra on social media is a start, but only replaces negative noise with positive noise. When Job's friends start telling him about how merciful and loving God is, he cannot hear it because it is not answers he is looking for (Job 16:2). 

Job's healing finally comes when he has poured out his whole heart and has run out of words to say (Job 42:2), when he stops trying to understand why and listens to God's voice himself, the wonderful Counsellor. For us, Job seems to suggest we stop searching for understanding and solutions when those around us are suffering, leaving this to the experts and professionals. His story indicates that our presence is what is required and our ability to carve out space to truly listen to one another, letting those suffering speak those sacred words from the depths of their souls when they are ready. It is the silently waiting for seven days that is more beneficial than what comes out of our mouths.