THANKSGIVING IS A SURE PATH IN THE MIDST OF TROUBLE
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“Be careful for nothing; but in
every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.”—Philippians 4:6
“Many
plans are in a man’s heart, but the counsel of the Lord will stand,” said
King Solomon in Proverbs 19:21. Thought Habakkuk lived about three hundred
years after Israel’s wisest monarch, the prophet Habakkuk saw Solomon’s pity
proverb become hard reality. The people
of Judah had chosen a path and made their plans, but they had long ago stopped
seeking the Lord’s counsel—and now they were colliding with it.
Evil and corruption permeated the society
of Habakkuk’s day, from the most lavish room in the palace to the plainest
threshing floor in the valley. Once, the
people of Judah had pursued justice and truth.
Now selfish gain was their goal, and the government stank of
corruption. But God was about to reveal
His own plan to Habakkuk, one that would scuttle godless agendas and reveal a
desperate need for the Lord’s unchanging counsel.
In a prophecy, God revealed that the
ancient world’s most formidable nations, Egypt, and Assyria, would be
defeated. A new ruthless superpower—the
Babylonians—would overwhelm them both.
This emerging enemy would eventually take aim at the people of Judah,
too, destroying the beloved city of Jerusalem and taking her people captive.
Habakkuk cried out in sadness and
confusion. True, Judah needed discipline
but why would an enemy be allowed to supply that correction? Why would a loving God permit evil to be the
tool that brought the nation back to Himself (Habakkuk 1:12-17)?
In a gracious response recorded for
us by the prophet, God explained that the Babylonians would indeed punish the
people for their sins, but He would one day punish these foreigners for theirs
as well (Habakkuk 2:2-20).
Tough times of correction and
discipline were ahead, but the Lord allowed heartache for the ultimate good of
His beloved people. God’s children had
to do more than repent and let go of their sins; they had to cling tightly to
the truth. God encouraged Habakkuk to
spread this word of encouragement, “The righteous
will live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4).
That faith is what emboldened the prophet to speak these
inspiring words of thanksgiving in chapter 3:17-19, “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—Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my
salvation. 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.”
Habakkuk was able to offer thanksgiving in spite
of bad news. He saw terrible sorrow,
pain, and trouble ahead for the people, but he also discerned, through the eyes
of faith, that God would make a way to overcome each looming enemy.
The Lord does not always move the mountains that
are in His children’s way. Sometimes,
the obstacles we face are consequences for sin, mistakes, or poor choices. Other times, they are a there because of the
fallen world or as an avenue for us to grow in our faith. But always, God gives us the strength to
overcome every difficulty, making our feet as a nimble on rocky terrain as
those of a deer, “He makes my feet like
the feet of deer, and sets me on my high place” (Psalm 18:33). Think about these gracious animals and how
they can leap over dangerous impasses, balance on precarious, sharp rocks, and
gain ground where other animals would slide backwards or even fall.
God produces in the believer the spiritual agility
to climb where others might stumble and tumble downwards. Where some people might tremble in fear at
the size of the obstacle ahead and the difficulty of the path, we can express
thanksgiving to our God, who makes us sure-footed. He has equipped us, through the Holy Spirit,
to be just as secure and safe on a steep, treacherous peak as we would be on
the bank of a quiet stream.
Like Habakkuk, we can face any unexpected
calamity with a spirit of thanksgiving if we make a decision to live by
faith. God can even use our enemies to
bring about His loving, perfect will for our lives.
When the road ahead is rough and we have to
navigate an unexpected path, Habakkuk’s prayer reminds us that we can still
celebrate the Lord’s sovereignty because we know that He is good and His will
is best, no matter what lies ahead.
God may not move our mountain, but He can give
us the ability to climb. What matters is
that we keep moving, walking with Him.
Prayer—Father
I ask You to forgive me for murmuring and complaining about my circumstances
and what I see coming for the future generations who do no know You. I choose to see with the eye of faith and to
trust You for overcoming every obstacles for my nation, my state, my city and
my people, in Jesus Name. Amen.
