“I will stand at my watch and station myself on the ramparts; I will look to see what he will say to me, and what answer I am to give to this complaint.”
Habakkuk 2:1
Why is God not answering my prayer when I am trying to live right? This is how Habakkuk felt, and he wanted some answers. Some people think that we are never to question God about anything. When you are talking to someone who has experienced a tragedy or some kind of loss, people tend to automatically give a pat answer. Don’t just say, “God’s in control. He will work it out. God’s good.” Sometimes the questions have to come before the recovery occurs. It did for Habakkuk.
Although he was a person of faith, he was very frustrated about all that was happening in the land. He had a talk with the Lord. Apparently he had prayed a long time about some things–the problems in the land–the injustices, and God was silent. It was as if his prayers were not being heard or as if God were ignoring him altogether.
This time, God gave him an answer. he says, “I am doing something about it.” It was not the answer that Habakkuk expected.
There are probably some things you have been praying about; and you, too, are wanting to know why. Have you ever felt like Habakkuk? He didn’t know how to take God’s answer when it came. At first he was upset by God’s silence; and now when he heard how God was going to move, he didn’t understand that either.
Today people are turning from the faith. People are expressing doubts and even outright unbelief. Are you often at the point of giving up and saying, “It just doesn’t work for me. Guess I’ll just give up.” What can you do when you are confronted with this sort of threat to your faith? How do you handle problems when at first you see only what looks like inaction on God’s part? Then when He answers in a totally unexpected way, how do you accept it?
We can learn these things from this Old Testament prophet:
1. Stop and Think: Do not react emotionally to the problem where you make a hasty decision. Some people say, “Well, I’ll just quit the church.” Some panic in a crisis situation or become paralyzed with fear. These are all emotional reactions that throw us off track.
2. Restate: Restate to yourself the basic things you know about God. Habakkuk did this. In spite of unanswered prayer, he knew that God is everlasting from the beginning to the end. What about God in your past experiences? Begin with God.
3. Apply it: Take what you know about God–past experiences–His faithfulness–and apply it to the problem.
4. Leave it: If the answer hasn’t come, leave it in the hands of God and ask Him to show it to you. When God gave he answer, he said, “I don’t understand the answer but then you are mightier than I. Therefore I will just wait for you to reveal it to me.”
THINK: I will wait on God for the answer.
