When all hope seems lost (pt.3)

There is a final way we can keep our faith in God:

We can keep our faith in God during times of trouble by anticipating restoration.

Look at verse 19. Habakkuk this time attributes God as the source of his strength. We can’t do everything on our own. We are the strongest when we admit how we are really weak and allow God to carry us through our times of trials. <>

Psalm 18 says “It is God who arms me with strength.” Psalm 27 says “The Lord is the strength of my life.” Psalm 46 says “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Jeremiah 16:19 says “O Lord, my strength and my fortress, my refuge in the day of affliction.” Paul writes in 2 Corinthians that the Lord said to him “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in your weakness.” Make no mistake about it; we are weak but God is strong. <>

Habakkuk then writes that the Lord “will make my feet like deer’s feet.” What does this mean? If you’ve ever been hunting you know how fast deer can run. If you shoot at a deer and miss or slightly hit him, that deer will run fast and will run far. Deer are swift. Habakkuk has full confidence in the Lord that He will bring him swiftly back into the land once this captivity is over.

Habakkuk then says that God “will make me walk on my high hills.” Whenever someone is standing on the top of a hill they have an advantage. They can see the whole surrounding area. If danger approaches, the person on the hill notices quickly. Also, when one is on top of a hill, there is a feeling of security and safety. Habakkuk is anticipating the day that he will feel like this; the day of his restoration.

Lance Armstrong was diagnosed with cancer. He was given less then a 50% chance to live. However, he lived through it. During the experience, it was no doubt a horrible one and the pain was probably excruciating, but he got through it. Since his cancer, Lance Armstrong has not only returned to competitive cycling, he has owned competitive cycling. He has won six Tour De France races: the elite competition for cycling and arguably the toughest race of any kind in the world. Lance Armstrong experienced restoration.
<> Times of trouble will come as sure as the sun rises and sets. But know that God will restore us. How will he restore us? The answer to that question is different depending on the situation and how God decides to bless us. God will restore us either in this life or in our eternal life.

However, God will not restore us when we die if we do not repent of our sins and accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior

But as for this life, how can we keep our life from feeling like it is spinning out of control in these times of trouble? We must keep our faith in God. We can keep our faith in God in these times by accepting the situation, praising Him, and anticipating restoration.

Habakkuk, Job, Lance Armstrong: all three faced a horrible situation. All three accepted their situation. All three were restored. One day when Jesus comes back with tens of thousands of angels we will be restored, but until that day, we can take comfort in the fact that the Lord is our strength.