From Questions to Rejoicing

I heard and my inward parts trembled, at the sound my lips quivered. Decay enters my bones, and in my place I tremble. Because I must wait quietly for the day of distress, for the people to arise who will invade us.

Though the fig tree should not blossom and there be no fruit on the vines, though the yield of the olive should fail and the fields produce no food, though the flock should be cut off from the fold and there be no cattle in the stalls, yet I will exult in the LORD, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation. The Lord GOD is my strength, and He has made my feet like hinds' feet, and makes me walk on my high places. Hab 3:16-19 (NASB) Habakkuk is a book of questioning. The prophet pretty much raises to God the question of how He could be a good and just God and still allow such suffering - still call upon such ruthless people to execute discipline upon God's chosen people. God responds to Habakkuk, but the response is not necessarily comforting. God does not say, "Oh, you are right. This is not a wise decision - I need to be more gentle when disciplining My people." Instead, He illuminates the evil in the hearts and deeds of His children and says, "This is the way it must be." God's decree brought terror to Habakkuk's heart (Hab 3:16), but his next response was one I so incredibly need to learn from. His next response was the beautiful passage of Hab 3:17-19. He knows that everything is going to fall apart. He knows that everything is going to be very, very bad. He knows that suffering, death, and exile are coming because of the sin of his people. Yet, he has come to the point that he also realizes that God is still good. God is still love. God is still his strength and salvation. So, he commits to rejoicing despite the utter terror in his heart. I struggle with that. I do not want to rejoice when I am looking into a difficult time. I want to fuss and cry and whine and complain. I want to convince God to change His mind and bring immediate resolution. It is okay for me to question Him, but then I must accept His answer - not with resignation, but with rejoicing. He is still worthy of rejoicing, no matter what!