Lessons from the Prophets (2)

Habakkuk 3:18 – Yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.

I am so glad that these oracles and prophecies of God were written down, either by the prophet themselves or a scribe. They contain a lot of tough reading but they are packed with truths that we need to know and understand.

Through Nahum I could see the absolute necessity of keeping my focus completely on God so as not to fall into the trap of conforming to social pressures. The devil presses in on every side in his war against God and sometimes I get caught in the crossfire, but the Lord is my stronghold, the battle is his and with him I can stand firm.

In Habakkuk, I could see myself and the lesson was so simple yet so hard. If I say that I have faith in God, I need to live in that faith and trust in His sovereign will, even when it causes me pain and heartache. I need to remember that the pain is temporary and is carried by his sustaining grace.

Zephaniah showed me the sorrow that I can cause the Lord through unfaithfulness and selfish disregard of his ways. In contrast, he showed me the joy that God has when I give myself completely to him. The most amazing revelation was discovering that God sings over me – loudly! Hallelujah!

Haggai taught me to listen when God speaks, trust his direction and not to put his will on hold. Fear can hinder me in moving forward and when I am not moving in His will, I am robbing myself of his blessings.

What stood out for me most in the oracle of Zechariah was that God never stops working in my life and on my life. He is continually perfecting me and as I go through the refiner’s fire, He is the armour around me and the power within me.

The lesson I learned from Malachi was the most surprising and saddest because after all these years of being a Christian, I still do not fully comprehend the love that God has for me. God sees a holy union with someone made pure by the sacrifice of His Son and yet a lot of the time my selfish nature gets in the way of maintaining that union. Still, He loves me, still, He draws me back and still, I am part of His treasured possession.

Knowing the God that we serve and steeping ourselves in the truth of His Word, equips us to stand strong and to stand firm in our faith and to trust His sovereignty in every circumstance.