Think of someone who is so good that you can’t think of anything he or she has done wrong. You might be thinking about Jesus; that’s good. Jesus is the only perfect person! But I want you to think of someone besides Jesus—maybe your granddad or a favorite teacher. Job was like them. The Bible describes him as “blameless and upright,” as someone who “feared God and turned away from evil” (Job 1:1). He lived right in the sight of God and people. He was really good, and he was also really rich. God had blessed him with many possessions and many children.

One day, some really bad things happened to this really good man. First, a group of bad people stole his oxen and donkeys and killed some servants. Then, fire came down from the sky, burned up his sheep, and destroyed more servants. Then, more bad people stole his camels and murdered even more servants. Can you even imagine? In one day, he lost almost all he owned. His bad day, however, was not over. A great wind (like a hurricane!) came and blew down the house where all ten of Job’s children were having a special celebration. They all died. How awful.

Job went from being the richest man to losing everything in a single day. How could this happen? It happened because Satan (that ancient snake) told God that if Job lost everything, he would curse God. Satan said, “Of course Job trusts you when everything is good, but take it all away and he won’t.” But God knew Job would keep trusting him, so he let Satan take it all away. And God was right. After Job lost everything, he worshiped and said, “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord” (1:21). Even though he trusted God, he was still very sad. He was so sad that he tore his robe. It was as if his heart were torn in two. He didn’t understand why everything had happened. But Job knew that God was still in charge and worthy to be worshiped. He loved God when he had everything, and he loved God when he had nothing. How amazing.