I have watched some episodes of the old ‘Dick Van Dyke Show’ at least a dozen times. We own the whole collection of this great tv show. Last night we watched the ‘Andy Griffith Show’ where Gomer yells, “Citizen’s arrest, citizen’s arrest!” Reruns are great and a very real part of our life.
So…I have decided to occaisionally do a ‘rerun’ of an old sermon that I have done.
If you have never read Habakkuk, you need to. The prophet of God had asked God to do something to wake the people out of their spiritual slumber. God did nothing. He was silent. Habakkuk pleaded with God until God spoke. He said, “I am going to do something you will not like or believe. I am going to energize your enemy to come against you!”
Habakkuk was shocked. He now faced an enormous problem with no way out. This is the backdrop of an awesome lesson that God gives us in this little obscure book. The book could be entitled, “How to Face Life Shattering Problems”. In this book, God gives us precise steps in the midst of overwhelming conditions:
- Focus of what you do know! Quit focusing on the ‘unknowns’ such as how can we survive or how can make that payment. Read Habakkuk 1:12-17. He focused on the faithfulness of God.
- Wait on God. Read Habakkuk 2:1-3. “Though the answer tarries, wait for it!”
- Trust God. Habakkuk 2:4…the just shall live by faith. This could well be the most profound verse in all of scripture.
- Remember the past acts of God. From 2:5 until 3:15, Habakkuk recalls how God has acted in the past. Keep a journal and during tough times, read it to see how God brought deliverance.
- Be honest. Read Habakkuk 3:16. “God, I trust you…but I am scared to death!”
- Express perfect faith. Read the most extra-ordinary passage in all of scripture in 3:17-19. “God, even if my circumstances never change…I am still going to love you!”
By the way, Habakkuk means “to embrace”. When problems come, the best thing we can do, is embrace the Lord.