The doctors words landed in her heart with a thud. It was cancer. Her world stopped as she thought of her husband and children. They had prayed diligently, hoping for a different outcome. What would they do? With tears streaming down her face, she said softly, God, this is beyond our control. Please be our strength.
What do we do when the prognosis is devastating, when our circumstances are beyond our control? Where do we turn when the outlook seems hopeless?
The prophet Habakkuks situation was out of his control, and the fear that he felt terrified him. The coming judgment would be catastrophic (Hab. 3:1617). Yet, in the midst of the impending chaos, Habakkuk made a choice to live by his faith (2:4) and rejoice in God (3:18). He did not place his confidence and faith in his circumstances, ability, or resources, but in the goodness and greatness of God. His trust in God compelled him to proclaim: The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights (v. 19).
When we are faced with difficult circumstancessickness, family crisis, financial troublewe, too, have only to place our faith and trust in God. He is with us in everything we face.
The prophet Habakkuk gives us an inspiring example of someone who argued with God yet came to the point of trusting Him regardless of what happened. He came to believe that God would eventually unmask the idols of the world (literally nothings). Habakkuk could not see that the Creator was going to bring judgment against the idolatrous violence in Israel and Babylon. He could not know how Gods Son would ultimately come in a human body to bear the consequence of the worlds rebellion and loss of understanding.
How does the story of Habakkuk encourage you as you face your own challenges of faith? Mart DeHaan