Summer vacation is winding down, and we feel it! I cannot count the numbers of times a day that I say, “We do not walk on furniture”, “Stop yelling”. “Stop fighting”, and “Stop picking on each other”. It makes me weary. Saying the same thing over and over and over again. Right now, my son is in his room ‘on strike’. From what? I don’t know. Me? My rules?
Honestly, I do the same thing as my kids. I make the same mistakes over and over again. I make myself weary, because it feels like I will never change. God is a loving father and keeps forgiving me. I think that humans have been the same since the beginning of time.
In the bible, the prophet Habakkuk saw violence and strife all around him. The wicked surrounded the righteous, and it felt like there was no end in sight. It felt like justice would never prevail. Do you every feel like that? Do you feel weary? Do you want to go on strike from laundry, cleaning and saying the same thing over and over again? I do.
The Prophet Questions God’s Judgments
The burden which the prophet Habakkuk saw.
The Prophet’s Question
O Lord, how long shall I cry,
And You will not hear?
Even cry out to You, “Violence!”
And You will not save.
Why do You show me iniquity,
And cause me to see trouble?
For plundering and violence are before me;
There is strife, and contention arises.
Therefore the law is powerless,
And justice never goes forth.
For the wicked surround the righteous;
Therefore perverse judgment proceeds.
–Habakkuk 1:1-4 (NKJV)
The Lord did reply to Habakkuk. The Lord knows how you are feeling. God has big plans. God loves to use people for his good works, so everyone declares the work was from the goodness of God.
The Lord’s Reply
“Look among the nations and watch—
Be utterly astounded!
For I will work a work in your days
Which you would not believe, though it were told you.
–Habakkuk 1:5 (NKJV)
So, when you are going through a difficult time, know that it will not last forever. Have faith. Know that God has done it before, and he will do it again. Don’t look at what you see in front of you. Close your eyes and believe that God has something wonderful waiting for you. Live by faith.
The Just Live by Faith
Then the Lord answered me and said:
“Write the vision
And make it plain on tablets,
That he may run who reads it.
For the vision is yet for an appointed time;
But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie.
Though it tarries, wait for it;
Because it will surely come,
It will not tarry.
“Behold the proud,
His soul is not upright in him;
But the just shall live by his faith.
–Habakkuk 2:2-4 New King James Version (NKJV)
You cannot see faith, so its easy to question it and convince yourself its not real. Faith is real. You cannot see it. You can feel it.
Living by faith takes effort everyday. I need some encouragement and inspiration.
The bible gives me encouragement and inspiration. Reading scripture fills that empty space inside of me. I need to fill it each day. I need to read the bible everyday. I know this. I say it often. Do I actually do it? No. When I don’t read the bible, I start to feel weary. Exhausted. I start comparing myself to others, and I come up short. God made me for a special purpose. God made you for a special purpose. I am enough. You are enough.
We need to live by faith through difficult times and mundane times. Wouldn’t it be nice to wake up each day with hope that everything is going to turn out great? The just live by faith. How do you want to live?
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