Thursday, April 3, 2014

Habakkuk 2:1-5 - Faith Builder

When I hear about miracles, my faith is given a boost.  Last night I heard of two that made me want to shout, "Praise the Lord!"

The first one is where the Lord is shrinking a tumor in the breast of a wonderful lady with the chemo that was started a couple weeks ago.  Sometimes He chooses to show His Glory in a healing instantly.  Sometimes it's through doctors and medicine.  Sometimes it's through death.  I continue to pray for this family as she goes through these treatments.  I praise His Holy Name for the wisdom He has given the doctors with her situation.

The second miracle is one that some may not see as a miracle but it truly was.  A man fell and was laying on the ground, crying out for help.  There was no one around.  An elderly lady who lives two houses from them, on the opposite side of the street who has no hearing in one ear and little in the other heard him and followed the voice until she found him and called 911.  Wow!  (Another aspect was that the wind was blowing the opposite direction!)  The Lord provided her with clear hearing for the moment it was needed.  

I'm sure some would be saying, "Well why would the Lord allow the cancer or the fall?"  My answer to that is, "I don't know. But I do know he takes 'bad' situations and brings 'good' out in them."  I know with both of these situations my faith has received a boost.  I also know these two people and their families had their faith boosted.  

How can we see miracles happen in our daily lives?  We need to look for them.  Miracles happen all around us every day.  I think sometimes people think miracles only come through the healing of physical bodies.  But miracles also occur in the healing of relationships.  They come in the healing of emotions.  We need to be an optimist and not a pessimist in order to see the miracles that the Lord is doing.  I praise His Holy Name for the miracle of breath this morning…for the miracle of being able to walk because I've had many times where I couldn't walk on my own due to the MS.  Those are the kind of miracles we take for granted.  It is by walking a life of faith that the Lord works miracles in and through us.  

Habakkuk 2 (NIV)

I will stand at my watch
    and station myself on the ramparts;
I will look to see what he will say to me,
    and what answer I am to give to this complaint.

The Lord’s Answer

Then the Lord replied:
“Write down the revelation
    and make it plain on tablets
    so that a herald may run with it.
For the revelation awaits an appointed time;
    it speaks of the end
    and will not prove false.
Though it linger, wait for it;
    it will certainly come
    and will not delay.
“See, the enemy is puffed up;
    his desires are not upright—
    but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness—
indeed, wine betrays him;
    he is arrogant and never at rest.
Because he is as greedy as the grave
    and like death is never satisfied,
he gathers to himself all the nations
    and takes captive all the peoples.

Matthew Henry writes:  "When tossed and perplexed with doubts about the methods of Providence, we must watch against temptations to be impatient. When we have poured out complaints and requests before God, we must observe the answers God gives by his word, his Spirit, and providences; what the Lord will say to our case. God will not disappoint the believing expectations of those who wait to hear what he will say unto them. All are concerned in the truths of God's word. Though the promised favour be deferred long, it will come at last, and abundantly recompense us for waiting. The humble, broken-hearted, repenting sinner, alone seeks to obtain an interest in this salvation. He will rest his soul on the promise, and on Christ, in and through whom it is given. Thus he walks and works, as well as lives by faith, perseveres to the end, and is exalted to glory; while those who distrust or despise God's all-sufficiency will not walk uprightly with him. The just shall live by faith in these precious promises, while the performance of them is deferred. Only those made just by faith, shall live, shall be happy here and for ever."

I love that last sentence…"Only those made just by faith, shall live, shall be happy here and for ever."  When we live by faith, the Lord will be with us every step of the way.  It doesn't mean our life will be a bed of roses but it does mean that our faith will enable us to not only be praising Him in the good days but to also be praising Him in the tough days.  Our faith will grow as our relationship with Him grows.  Last night we were talking in our small group about the importance of having communication with the Lord.  If we don't communicate with Him, how can we expect Him to be close to us?  We can't.  It's just like with a marriage.  If we don't communicate with our spouse, how can we expect them to know what we are thinking?  It's not possible without communication.  The same goes with increasing our faith.  If we don't exercise our faith, it can't increase.  We must live by faith each and every day.  

We also must make sure to give God the glory for the opportunities He gives us to increase our faith. That is not always easy to do.  How do we praise Him when going through the death of a loved one?  How do we praise Him when there is someone in our life who is blatantly sinning against the Lord and refuses to accept Him?  How do we praise Him when we watch a loved one suffer with cancer?  We do so in faith….faith that He will get us through.  Faith that not only will He get us through but He will bless us in the process.

Dear Jesus,
Thank You for stretching my faith through showing Your Glory yesterday.  Thank You for reminding me that in order to increase my faith, I must exercise it.  I give You the Glory Father in leading me to Habakkuk 2 this morning.  So many times our prayers seem to go unanswered yet You hear them.  Sometimes the enemy makes me get impatient with waiting  on You and then my faith begins to waiver.  I refuse to allow the enemy any foothold in my life.  I declare I will be an optimist and not a pessimist.  I promise to You, Lord, to see the miracles You put in my life each and every day.  Thank You Jesus for being My Faith Builder!  Amen.

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