‘Though the fig tree does not blossom and there is no fruit on the vines. Though the product of the olive fails and the fields yield no food. Though the flock is cut off from the fold and there are no cattle in the stalls . . . ’ (Habakkuk 3:17 Amplified).
Sometimes we think the Old Testament has little to offer in our modern 21st century world. I beg to differ. Most of us are living in some sort of ‘though.’ Some more intensely than others.
Below is my offering:
- Though the Oklahoma wheat crop — our family farm — is dying, turning yellow from the drought
- Though counties around the farm grow lush and green from clouds of rain while our county remains cracked dry
- Though evil continues to win its earthly battles
- Though groceries and gas prices continue to rise but income does not
- Though chaos explodes around us every day
- Though government systems still do not ‘get it’ and fill the air waves with empty promises
- Though babies are shot through car windows
- Though deception digs deep and destroys logical thinking
- Though groups of believers suffer from the consequences of one person’s sin
- Though my prayers go unanswered after years of lament and pleading
- Though illness threatens the corners of life in spite of healthy lifestyles
- Though God continues to practice patience when everything in me screams for justice
‘Yet I will rejoice in the Lord. I will exult in the victorious God of my salvation. The Lord God is my Strength, my personal bravery, my invincible army. He helps me make spiritual progress even in the places of trouble, suffering, and responsibility’ (Habakkuk 3:18-19 Amplified).
- Yet the true God is the One I have chosen to believe
- Yet Jesus is the final vindicator
- Yet justice, mercy, and peace will eventually define us
- Yet God can restore what has been stolen
- Yet the provisions I need will somehow show up just in time
- Yet government systems are mere shadows of God’s eternal design
- Yet truth is still stronger than deception
- Yet God can heal at any time and in any way best chosen for the situation
- Yet the Creator God creates in me
- Yet God’s patience is a precursor to his merciful justice
- Yet the Almighty Peaceful One sustains me within the chaos
- Yet God loves every one in the entire world
- Yet God can rain down his blessings of moisture at any moment and create a storm out of a tiny cloud
- Yet even when the harvest does not show up, God can still provide
- Yet even though it sometimes feels naïve, I will continue to believe in the abounding love of God
The Old Testament prophet concluded with his belief system, and so can we. All it takes is merely gutsing out a germ of faith. We can find our hope by living in the ‘Yet.’
©2023 RJ Thesman – All Rights Reserved
For more information about faith, check out Uploading Faith: What It Means to Believe.
Amen and AMEN! (I must dig out my Amplified Bible again.) This post causes me to use it again. 😊
The Amplified is what I read from at night. I always like its expansion, sometimes almost like a thesaurus, on each verse.