Unwavering Confidence in the Lord

Habakkuk 3:1-19 records a prayer of the prophet Habakkuk. He was a man teeming with questions. When he saw the injustice around him, he wondered where God was. He wanted to know why God had not yet acted to end it. God, in his grace, met Habakkuk, and offered him answers. These answered first confused, then terrified, and finally subdued the prophet.

In the end, he had to make a choice. Would he trust the God he knew? or would he reject him? The prayer recorded in Habakkuk 3 gives us the answer to that question. He chose to trust God. He says, "LORD, I have heard of report about You; Lord, I stand in awe of Your deeds. Revive Your work in these years; make it know in these years, in Your wrath remember mercy!" (Hab. 3:2). In essence, he is saying, "I know who you are. You are the Holy One of Israel." It is a declaration of trust.

Habakkuk 3:3-17 capture a terrifying vision of God--the Sovereign Creator, the Righteous Judge, the Mighty Warrior. In his wrath he will punish the nations, in his mercy he will rescue his people. The image is so terrifying that leaves Habakkuk crushed under the weight of it. He stands with heart pounding, knees knocking caught somewhere between terrified and awestruck. It is as if we witness him lost in the glory of the Lord.

Finally, peace washes over him, perhaps as he realizes that God does not intend to harm him. He stands, cool as a cucumber, with unwavering confidence in the Lord.  He says,

Though the fig tree doesn't bud
and there is no fruit 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,
yet I will triumph in Yahweh;
I will rejoice in the God of my salvation! (Hab. 3:17-18, HCSB).

 This prayer can teach us about prayer in general. It teaches us to approach with an awareness of who we are approaching, to approach with reverence, and to approach with anticipation. It teaches us to approach God as he is, in all of his holiness, and not as we want him to be. And it teaches us to trust, even when we don't fully understand what God is doing.