Job 1:1-12

 ¹ In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil. ² He had seven sons and three daughters, ³ and he owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred donkeys, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East.

 ⁴ His sons used to hold feasts in their homes on their birthdays, and they would invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. ⁵ When a period of feasting had run its course, Job would make arrangements for them to be purified. Early in the morning he would sacrifice a burnt offering for each of them, thinking, “Perhaps my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.” This was Job’s regular custom.

 ⁶ One day the angels came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came with them.⁷ The LORD said to Satan, “Where have you come from?”

   Satan answered the LORD, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.”

 ⁸ Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.”

 ⁹ “Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied. ¹⁰ “Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. ¹¹ But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.”

 ¹² The LORD said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.”

   Then Satan went out from the presence of the LORD."

Although this passage does not yet delve directly into Job's coming plight, we still see something extraordinary happening here. Verses 1-6 display Job's unyielding faith in God, even being called the greatest man of the East because of it! ..But why give Satan this amount of power over someone who is so whole heartedly following and pursuing God? It doesn't seem fair at all..

Job's faith in God is evident, but verse 12 displays that God has "faith" in Job. God has blessed Job all his life, with a large family, many cattle, and a vast amount of land and Satan does not believe that Job's faith will last under pressure. Essentially, a bet ensues, between God and Satan, on whether or not Job will curse God when his life is put under stress. As humans, fallen and sinful, we have a tendency to praise God when our lives are going well, but the second it gets tough, we draw away from God and often blame him for the problems we go through. This is wrong, very wrong. The correct response to strife is running to God! Only He can provide us with lasting peace when we need it most; anyone and anything else will let us down.