Nothing…but Praise

Habakkuk 3: 17-19; 17) “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, 18) yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. 19) The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights.”

          The first verse may apply to anyone, believer or sinner. Both one can fall on hard times or bad circumstances and situations that they make for themselves or get thrust into that will cause either one trouble. Troubles at work. Marriage problems. Being physically or emotionally separated from loved ones.  Now the sinner, or non-believer, has only himself. He desperately tries to fix things himself. And he fails. He looks to make things right, through his power, of which is never enough. A wall keeps him continually trying something else, only to have another wall appear. “You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink. But never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.” Haggi 1:6 (NIV).

          For the believer, when sinfulness brings about trouble, we first must humble ourselves and ask for forgiveness. And then we must ask for strength and courage to weather the circumstances that we are in. The Lord Jesus is true to walk with us. Difficulties will come, but as we continue to follow Him, Jesus will catch us when we stumble. He tells us the truth when He states “I will never forsake you.” Now if our situation was of our doing, there will be a time when correction and discipline takes place. But even then Christ holds our hand. He lovingly leads us back to walk on the road He has made for us to walk. So as we begin to walk that road and follow the Light of His Glory as it illuminates the path we walk, we return to His word. And we allow His word to feed and water our spirits. “O my God, I trust, lean on, rely on, and am confident in You. Let me not be put to shame or [my hope in You] be disappointed; let not my enemies triumph over me.” Psalm 25:2 (AB).

          As Christ begins to restore us. We begin to feel His love for us. As we study His word, through daily devotions or a bible study group, it begins to take root in our hearts. Our spirit begins to be uplifted. Christ faithfully restores the Holy Spirit into our hearts. As we obediently follow Jesus, we are restored and we are strengthened through that obedience. Blessings return and lift up our praises to Him. Our worship time means more to us because we now see where our Father has brought us from. He has taken our shame and hurt and embarrassment away so that our feet are walking on the firm path of His mercy and grace. We have left our circumstances and sins in the past allowing us to walk in the “Newness of life.” We lift our hands and rejoice in what Christ has done for us and to us. “I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” Isaiah 61:10 (NIV).

          As we mature in our walk, the power from His word and His loving voice our hearts hear, begins to build up a desire to share our faith. Our walk with Jesus has led us to live a life separate and different of that of the world. And others may have already noticed. Which may have either led to questions or ridicule. Either way the Lord has given us strength to endure, and to answer those questions. And we begin to notice that we are looking at people differently. We see those who are lost and we begin to pray for them. We see the hurting and we pray for them. God has also opened our ears to hear the hurts and fears of many and we diligently pray for them. So now our maturity brings us to realize that all of this has come about by God’s blessings because of our obedience at continually dying to our selfish ways and relying on and trusting in Jesus Christ. Our hearts now experience only a slight tinge of the total overwhelming joy we will feel when we meet Christ face to face. And God gives us an ever increasing desire to share that joy with others. It’s a desire in us for them to experience the same. Christ in us, working through us, using us to accomplish his will in our lives and in the lives of others we share with. As we begin to more clearly see this, our praise and worship of, and to, Jesus Christ will only get stronger. As our Father, through His discipline, grace, mercy and love has brought us from the despair we were facing, to the point we are now we must continually praise and worship Him for that. “Some trust in and boast of chariots and some of horses, but we will trust in and boast of the name of the Lord our God. “Psalm 20:7 (AB). “God is our refuge and strength, and ever-present