Is this man’s name hard for you to say? One of the books of the Bible is named after him. See if you can find it. Here is a clue: It’s in the Old Testament.
Habakkuk was one of God’s prophets, and he was a true man of faith during a very difficult time for the people of Israel. But I think you will find that his story has a very happy ending.
Maybe you remember that God gave Israel the ten commandments, which were very wise and good. Israel was a happy nation at that time. They had lots of sunshine and rain for their gardens and fields. The fathers and mothers were strong and healthy, and they had many healthy, happy children.
BUT, they did not obey God. (There’s always a “but” if you listen to the wrong voice.) Instead, they chose their own way and went deeper and deeper into sin. God loved them too much to let them go on in their own choices.
What did God send? Troubles. And He has sent troubles into your life too, because He loves you so much, and He knows the end of the road if you choose your own way. It’s like He is saying to you, Listen to Me! Will you listen?
There was another nation called Chaldeans who didn’t care at all about God, and they had very hot tempers and sharp swords. They came against Israel and fought and won. Israel was smashed to bits, and the strong men were either dead or prisoners. God sent bare, brown fields to their land. There was no fruit on the trees, no grapes on the vines, no olive oil for cooking, no wheat or rice or barley, and no cows or sheep for meat. What was left?
Have you ever felt like that? Everything is gone with nothing left and all you can do is cry? There are many right now in America who feel like that. There are some that may have lots of things, but nothing satisfies them, and their hearts are broken. They just want to kill themselves. Is it possible to have a happy ending after all that?
Listen, and you will hear Habakkuk’s song of triumph and joy when everything else was gone. “Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength ... . To the chief singer on my stringed instruments” (Habakkuk 3:18-19).
Do you really mean that Habakkuk was joyful when he had lost everything? Well, there was one thing he had not lost. He had the love of God in his heart forever! And he knew Him as the God of his salvation. He did not know, as you and I do, that God has given His only Son to die for sinners, for this had not yet happened. But he did know that God was faithful forever, and he was ready to sing about it. He did not have a big choir, but he had his own happy voice, and he wanted everyone to know, so he played a stringed instrument, like a harp.
We want you to know too. If you lose out on something today, or maybe you lose someone whom you love very much, remember that JESUS IS FOREVER! If you are saved, you can never lose Jesus, because He can’t lose you! “Jesus Christ [is] the same yesterday, and today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). And He says, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee” (Hebrews 13:5). “Lo, I am with you alway” (Matthew 28:20).
MEMORY VERSE: “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” Hebrews 13:5
ML-03/13/2011