Even In Times OF Famine; Continue To Rejoice...

Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.

Habakkuk 3:17-18

Despite the things that you don’t have or the situations that may not have gone the way you had planned, today’s devotional reminds us to take inventory of the things we do have and the plans that God has for us… There are so many things in this life that will not go according to our desires; however, the heart of a Christian can rejoice in this times knowing that the hand of God will never lead them down a path of destruction and calamity… As we grow in Christ, we must grow in the knowledge of His protection and love for us; the God that I serve will create a detour in my life not to keep me from getting to a particular point, but to guide me through a better path even if it has more bumps along the way… As a I think about the love of God, I recall the Israelites in the exodus from Egypt… The word of God clearly tells us that they were taken through a more scenic route to the promise land; however, the word of God also tells us that this was down because the more direct route would have had them engaging in war with the Philistines… And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt.” God always has your best interest at heart; in your life, even if you go through a long drought or a round about way of getting to your destiny, know today that you can rejoice in knowing that you are traveling this way for a reason and the promise of God which was planted before your first step will indeed be fulfilled… This is the message that Habakkuk instills in us today… It doesn’t matter what type of season you go through, it is of no significance if the promise is not visible; you continue to keep your joy in the Lord and trust His plan… You can trust in the Lord because you know the plan that He has for you, which is nothing short of salvation…  Knowing that God wants to save you, He wants you to have life and have it more abundantly, you can maintain your joy in times of despair, and you can keep your head up in the face of adversity because there is a work being perfected in you which will lead to the expected in which God has for you… As a child, it was extremely hard for me to understand the way in which my father handled my growth; I never could understand why he disciplined me and spoke to me about the incident afterwards; however, as time journeyed on and continued to get older I soon realized the desires which my father had for me… I soon realized that the path which I was own today was a direct result of the short term pain instilled upon my backside years before and I can truly say that I love him for that…

This same rule applies to this passage and to us today; our Father wants to deliver us and take us beyond what our finite minds can comprehend… When we go through trials and tribulations; when we endure pain and persecution, the word of God call us to remember where He wants to take us and not focus on what we are going through right now… Stop getting caught up in the way things are and focus on the way things will be when you come out of your situation or circumstance… There is a reason why the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines… There is a reason why you are disciplined and even though you may not want to believe it, there is a method to the madness of things which you may not comprehend at the present time… I believe that Paul (in his letter to the Church of Rome) understood that we must go through seasons in life and this is why he said “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” There is a joy, and a glory that will be revealed in and through you… The seasons of famine in your life simply allow you to appreciate the beauty of abundance that is to come… This is why you can rejoice in the hard times because you know that they won’t last and the times are guaranteed to change… Even in the worst of times, Habakkuk reminds us that we have a reason to rejoice… There are many days that have come and gone when we were left scratching our heads; everything we touched broke, every vision we had became blurry and our strength seemed to have disappeared! Some of us are feeling this way right now today… It seems that we are simply on the edge of the cliff with one foot hanging over and there is nobody there to pull us back in… These trials may not be easy, but we must remember that there are something’s in life that we must go through… There are some situations that we must bare and “take up our Cross!” Habakkuk was in a world filled with chaos, he was watching people give up their faith and lose hope, I think we can attest to that right now today… With this economy we are facing, with the job market being scarce and with our communities becoming more and more violent! Sure we are facing hard times, but we have a reason to rejoice… We have a reason to be happy in the midst of sadness, and that reason is because God vowed to never forsake us… That reason is because Jesus shed his blood for these things we face, the battle has already been won, your victory is assured through the blood of the lamb and we shall receive our crown in glory… This is why Habakkuk was able to rejoice, this is why we can rejoice… Habakkuk not only saw what God was doing in his life, but he also remembered where God had already brought him from; a drought can take place in our lives, but let us remember the drought that God already brought us through… Struggles may take place in our lives, but let us remember the struggles that God already brought us through… Paul said it best, I will gladly take pleasures in the affirmatives I face, for when I am weak, then I am strong…” God’s got you in the best of times, but really has you in the worst of times… So continue to smile and rejoice not matter what comes your way…

BE BLESSED!!!