Walking on Hight Hills

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 3:17-19

Habakkuk was a prophet in the 7th century BC, during a time when the nation of Israel was in a state of moral and religious decay.  The rise of the brutal Babylonian empire was a grave threat to all nations, and the Chaldean general (and future leader of Babylon) Nebuchadnezzar was marching towards Jerusalem.  God told Habakkuk that He was going to use the Babylonians to chastise the nation of Isral, and Habakkuk was watching it all happen.

Yet in the midst of this turmoil, Habakkuk makes the statement “Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.” 

Wow. On the verge of an invasion by a ruthless army, Habakkuk is talking about how joyful he is.  That tells me something:  Our thankfulness and joy don’t have to be tied to our circumstances. However many times, our joy is totally tied to our circumstances. 

We are thankful for the blessings of God in our lives:  Family, food, shelter, our church, our health.  But what if something has knocked us off the road? What if we are going through a hard time?  What if we are seeing our nation and culture fall into a slow fade of moral and religious decay?  What then?  We’re supposed to still be thankful, right? We’re supposed to just focus us in on God, and by some magical act we'll be thankful again.

Maybe it’s that easy.  Or maybe there is something more called for. I believe that there is another key component to the process of how we can be not only thankful and joyful in times of difficulty, but actually empowered!  And I believe part of the secret is found in 1 Peter 4:19:

And I believe part of the secret is found in 1 Peter 4:19:

Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator.  1 Peter 4:19

Join us Sunday for “Walking on High Hills”

Till the whole world hears,

Pastor Clay