Pandector.... Job was a wager between God and Satan that should have never been allowed. No loving "Father" allows the worst, unspeakable evils upon their "child" just to prove that child's love and/or loyalty...to anyone...for any reason. Absolute narcissism. That book is also the first horror story that I ever read, actually. The second is Revelations. The only lessons they teach is that said God can and will do whatever it wants, whenever it wants and that you are to never question its ways because of the power it has over you and will absolutely exact upon you without regret.
It's also amazingly contradictory to explain what emotional blackmail is...and then you use it by explaining that you and others have it bad or worse (lions or torches), so people here should not worry or focus on their own struggles - so just get back to the worshipping and being thankful for what you have part. To another, you speak as if you know the intentions of theirs and exactly the thinking of others in their congregation. You have a very pretentious stance of what "absolutely is." I call BS. I won't blame you entirely, though because like I already explained...that's a tactic taught from and by the churches, preachers, priests, clergy...since forever. Essentially, "well, we can't have any of this questioning...just keep accepting life as it is and keep begging some supposed loving entity for better treatment and options" .....at whatever later date it will or won't decide upon, of course. I see and hear this kind of blind and empathy lacking defense of religions constantly. I will always call it out because it's beyond not cool. There is no love in it whatsoever.
There's more issue with you saying "...God will always reward honest inquiry into his word. Just be aware; the reward someone demands from God will almost certainly not be the one he decides to give..." --- You just proved that it makes no sense for anyone to have specific prayers at all...ever. It's completely pointless and just proves your God is an even bigger narcissist than I already explained. This God must also hate Burger King, everyone because you will never be able to ask to have things your way. The overall fault in this instance being...why even want to go to this God's heaven, then? We're told that its heaven will consist of all that we could ever desire...but how is that, exactly...how is that guaranteed and that we can trust it when this same God won't even guarantee meeting our needs here in this complex, full of struggles existence that we never even asked for? We are given very little to trust at all. In fact, the only entity that gave us this existence according to you staunch believers is this same God that is supposed to never once have want, need, desire or anything such. And yet, here we are, constantly dealing with struggles, pain, and all this God can focus on is scaring us / forcing us to love and worship it ?!?!?!?!? PARADOX.
