After many weeks of quarantine, I think we’ve all been experiencing a little cabin fever. We’re ready to dine at a restaurant, go shopping, spend time with friends, and take a family vacation.

But we’re stuck.

We go to bed after another day of equivalent fractions, messy meals, and stopping fights between children, only to wake up and do it all over again.

We’re stuck.

There’s no playground to let our kids burn their energy. There’s no spa day for moms. And there’s no time for Netflix because we’re too busy googling how to divide fractions.

We’re stuck without escape. And we’re not even sure for how much longer.

The healthcare field feels trapped as well. We have no definitive treatment for COVID-19 and no preventative vaccine. We’re left feeling trapped when our patients ask us questions about a disease that we don’t know enough about. And we carry guilt when we hear about our patients being admitted to the hospital and dying quickly from the virus.

Trapped. Physically. Mentally. Trapped.

You know who else was trapped? Job.

In my previous blog, I discussed how Job lost all of his wealth and his children, was covered head to toe in painful sores, and then prayed to God, who then restored everything by double.

But actually, there’s a little more meat to Job’s story. He spent a lot of time going back and forth with his friends asking why these terrible things were happening to him, especially since he was blameless. And his friends debated on all of the possibilities of Job’s guilt and Job simply refuted their ideas.

God doesn’t give Job a straight answer. Instead, he interrogates him. God asks Job where he was when he laid the earth’s foundations, who marked its dimensions, who controls the seas, how to control a Behemoth and a Leviathan (two very large powerful creatures), if he can loosen Orion’s belt, if he can raise his voice to the clouds, send lightning bolts, or satisfy the hunger of lions, among many other things.

God’s purpose is to tell Job that He is in control. He’s telling Job that yes, you may be in a predicament that is difficult but He is in control. By interrogating Job, he’s reminding Job that He is omnipotent and wise. He knows the beginning, the present, and the future.

He’s telling Job to trust Him.

When you’re trapped, trust Him.

When you can’t save a patient’s life, trust Him. When you don’t know the answers about COVID-19, trust Him.

We may never know why we’re in this predicament with COVID-19 but we can trust God’s wisdom throughout it all.

When you’re trapped and you pass your uncertainties to God, you become free. When you’re uncertain about answers and you seek God for comfort, you gain your footing again.

Yes, we’re stuck. We’re trapped. But God is moving. And as a medical provider, that gives me freedom.

I’m trapped. But God isn’t.

My prayers for tonight is that as we experience cabin fever, God calms us. I pray that our feelings of imprisonment are replaced with freedom. I pray that we remember Job, a blameless man who lost it all and was trapped in a predicament that only God could fix. Remind us that sometimes we never know why something happens but we know who can help us through it. You, God, are never trapped. And I trust you when you move. Amen.