Even If

Are we there yet?  How will I pay for this?  What is the purpose of life?  As humans we live with many crucial questions.  But we do not always find the answers we seek.  The Old Testament prophet Habakkuk was no exception.

This January we will study the book of Habakkuk.  We know that he proclaimed God’s Word in the years leading up to the exile of Judah, which took place in 586 BC.   Habakkuk’s cousins from the northern kingdom of Israel had long been capture or killed.  Habakkuk could see the noose tightening around the neck of the southern kingdom of Judah.  It was in this time of terror and turmoil that Habakkuk cried out to God for answers.

His book almost seems like a celebration of uncertainty.  Yes, his historical context is much different than our own.  Yet in the fifty-six verses that make up Habakkuk we will discover the cries of our own hearts.  In the words of one Bible teacher, if we enter into this powerful prophecy “we are reduced to the biggest place in the universe – we are reduced to the presence of God.”  Even if our lives are filled with uncertainty, we can find security in our sovereign God.  Through Habakkuk we are going to discover how God expands our concept of Him and His purposes.  And with such hope, we’ll be able to put our questions into proper perspective.