Today's Reading:O.T. - Habakkuk 1 - 3
N.T. - Hebrews 10:32-39
Focus Verses: Habakkuk 3:16-18
16 I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us. 17 Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, 18 yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.
Insight:
Habakkuk questions God about the devastation Israel is experiencing at the hands of Babylon. He asks, "Why is this happening, God? How can you stand by and watch this happen?" God replies that he was raising up Babylon as a means of judgment, but this is not because they are more righteous than Israel. In fact, Babylon was destined to experience judgment too. God was using a dirty broom to sweep Israel away, but that broom would one day be destroyed.
Though he was trembling under the violence and oppression of Babylon, he waited patiently in faith for God to judge Babylon for its brutality. His faith in God made it possible for him to rejoice in the Lord. The promise of deliverance sustained him, and he resolved ("I will rejoice") to be joyful in God his Savior.
Response and Action:
Faith in God makes joy possible in worrying times of defeat and uncertainty. It's okay to cry out to God with questions of why something is happening. Hope looks beyond the painful present to a promise of something better.
O God, give me the faith to hold on to you during tough times. When you feel far away and I wonder where you are and why you're not doing something to help me now, give me the resolve to trust and hope in you. Help me to be joyful in all circumstances as I look to you for strength and provision. Amen.
Proverbs: 24:10
"If you falter in times of trouble, how small is your strength!"
Resources:
Letters From a Skeptic: Questions about Christianity
by Greg Boyd
