Turning point

Why doesn’t God always show up when we want Him to? And when He does, why doesn’t He do things the way we planned and the way we wanted? We’ve all been in that place, so let’s look at this dilemma through the eyes of the prophet, Habakkuk. Here’s how the story unfolds.

There’s a terrible injustice going on amongst God’s people. This is how Habakkuk describes it:

O Lord, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not listen? Or cry to you, ‘Violence!’ and you will not save? (Habakkuk 1:2 NRSV)

So God answers, but He promises a solution that Habakkuk just doesn’t want: a literal holocaust (which actually went on to happen in 587-586 BC).

Great! Brilliant! A holocaust? Thank God! Habakkuk does exactly what you or I would do. He says to God, “What, are you nuts? Are you for real?”

Two things strike me about this story. First, God is a sovereign God. He does it His way and that’s it. And secondly, as Habakkuk chats with this awesome, mighty, loving God, it changes him in ways that maybe he wouldn’t have expected.

Because after Habakkuk’s had his dummy spit, something extraordinary happens. He says:

I will stand at my watchpost, and station myself on the rampart; I will keep watch to see what he will say to me, and what he will answer concerning my complaint. (Habakkuk 2:1 NRSV)

Something’s changing in Habakkuk’s heart. 

He pours out his burdens to God; he listens to God’s response. But then he makes an important decision to go up to his watchpost, high up above the day-to-day pressures. And the moment he gets there, God speaks.

God says: “Trust Me, child. I see the iniquity, the injustice, the arrogance. I see it all and I have a plan. And that plan is coming. Wait for it. Trust in Me. I know what I’m doing.”

There’s a lesson in here for you and me. I don’t know where you are or exactly what you’re going through, but let me encourage you to take your complaint to God.

Pour your heart out to Him, and when you’re done, be ready to hear from Him – in His Word, during prayer, and in the unexpected things of life. 

Because when we wait on the Lord, He will answer us. 

He will show up.

LIFE APPLICATION QUESTIONS 

• What is it that’s weighing down on you right now that seems unfair? What’s the one thing you would have God change if you could?
• Now that you have that pictured in your mind, what’s your plan for overcoming it? If you could tell God how you wanted Him to solve the problem, what would your solution look like?
• But what if God had a different plan? What if His plan involved some hard yards and some sacrifice? What’s your response to that thought?
• How open are you to His plan? How prepared are you to get up on the rampart, up in the watch post, and wait for His answer?