Habakkuk 3:17-19
17 Though the fig tree may not blossom,
Nor fruit be on the vines;
Though the labor of the olive may fail,
And the fields yield no food;
Though the flock may be cut off from the fold,
And there be no herd in the stalls—
18 Yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
I will joy in the God of my salvation.
19 The Lord God is my strength;
He will make my feet like deer’s feet,
And He will make me walk on my high hills.
There is an old saying that goes, "Troubles travel in threes." I am not a superstitious person by nature, though this old proverb seems to rear its ugly head from time time. Just when you think all is right in your world, something happens and it seems to be like a row of falling dominos.
Now, we can spend a lot of wasted time and energy getting mad and frustrated when things goes south (speaking from experience). We can even try to blame God for allowing us to go through these times, or for not coming to our aid immediately.
The prophet Habakkuk had a very similar situation. He was watching the people of God turn away and do all sorts of evil. He asked God how long was He going to ignore this calamity and not bring justice to these evildoers. He asked God for deliverance and none came right away.
Then God answered back to the prophet and told him justice and judgment will soon come at the hands of the Chaldeans. Well, this did not sit well with Habakkuk. It is not the kind of judgment he was asking for. Habakkuk knew the Chaldeans were evil and wicked people. He knew they were extremely brutal and would rather see God smite the people of Israel than to be tortured at the hands of Babylonian empire.
But in the end, Habakkuk realized that God's way and His will was perfect and provided a perfect resolution to their troubles. When he realized all things were in God's hands, and that he had to trust God, he ended up praising God for it all.
First, I think we can be thankful that we aren't experiencing the exact same things Habakkuk experienced. But I also think we can learn a great deal from this little book, and how we can learn to rejoice in the Lord when the the bottom drops out of our lives and all else fails.
Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.
Your servant in Christ.
Pastor Tom
Comments