WHEN ALL YOU HAVE IS FAITH...

In my devotional time this week, a theme emerged.  First, from the Book of Job, I was reminded of Job’s faithfulness and integrity in the face of overwhelming conflict.  Despite losing all he possessed, from his material possessions, his very livelihood, his children, and eventually his own health, Job remained faithful and true to his core beliefs. 

The second reading that mirrored this theme came from the Book of Habakkuk, a book I rarely find myself reading on a regular basis.  Habakkuk cried out to God in desperation, questioning why God would allow the wicked to increase in wealth and power while the faithful were oppressed, physically and materially.

In both cases, the cries of these men could be summed up with a similar refrain, “God, we don’t understand.  We’ve been doing what You command.  We’ve been following Your words.  We’ve been faithful in our sacrifices and in our prayers.  We’ve not wavered in our devotion.  Why is this happening to us?  Why are You blessing the wicked while we suffer?”  All of us have probably asked the same question at some point in our lives.

It’s hard to remain upbeat and positive when you’re struggling in life.  When you’re living paycheck to paycheck, with never enough money to go around.  And, then, when it looks like things are starting to get better, disaster comes in -- a flood, a fire, termites, the refrigerator goes out, the car breaks down...  You understand what I’m saying.  You’ve been there.  You’ve experienced it.  The people of Houston and the surrounding areas affected by Hurricane Harvey are experiencing it right now.  So, we cry out to God with Job and Habakkuk in desperation.  We ask, “God, why us?  Where is our blessing?”

The answer from God to Job and Habakkuk was the same -- “Wait.” 

“Yes, you are right -- there is injustice and unfairness in the land.  Yes, there is rampant idolatry and misdistribution of wealth and power.  Yes, My people are being oppressed while the wicked seem to succeed.  But, wait.  Redemption is coming!  I am coming!  And, I will make all things right!”

In Habakkuk 1:5, God replied, “Look...and be amazed!  For I am doing something...you wouldn’t believe even if someone told you about it.”  God sees the injustice and the seeming success of the wicked while the righteous suffer, but that doesn’t mean He isn’t going to do anything.  He is.  In His time, not ours.

And here’s the point we need to keep in mind -- God does not operate on our time schedule.  God’s plans are eternal -- they stretch beyond our temporal understanding -- and they encompass the entire reach of human existence, not just in this plane, but past this dying world into eternity with Him.  In the Bible, we read of kairos, God’s time.  This is the time referred to when it says that Jesus came “in the fullness of time.”  It is the right time for God to act -- the very moment when God’s presence and power is most needed.

When we are in the midst of a crisis.  When we look around us at the devastation left by the trials and tribulations of this world, much as the people of Houston are doing right now, it is easy to give up.  It is easy to lose hope.  But God tells us to wait -- to trust -- to believe.  To not give up hope, because all is not lost.  Salvation is coming.  Redemption is coming.  Justice is coming.  But, it will come in His time, not ours. 

Job wrote in Job 1:21, "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised." And, in Job 13:15, Job said, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him.”

Job came to realize that all he had and all he was, even his very life, was given to him by God, and he would continue to praise God and trust Him with everything.  Habakkuk was given this same revelation from God, and held onto the promise that justice would prevail and that the righteous would be rewarded, in due time.

We must reach the same place in our lives, especially when we find ourselves in a situation like those in Houston.  At a time when all seems lost -- when we seem to be in total darkness -- we need to look for the Light -- to look for God responding in our midst.

Our response is to be faithful.  To remain true to God and His word.  To trust and obey and to have integrity of character and faithfulness through the trials and the tribulations.  Better days are coming -- this is a promise from God.  We must learn to take our eyes off the evil in this world, off the devastation around us, and trust that God will deal justly with the wicked, and redeem us from our conditions.