My mother used to remind me, “Some things just take time.” It takes time for the dough to rise, it takes time for a garden to grow, it takes time for cheese to age. Some things just take time. However, we live in a society that wants things now. One of my favorite lines comes from the movie Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. “I want an Oompah Loompah now!” We live in a fast-laned, energized, and immediate response society. We have become accustomed to having things our way, right now. We expect our food delivered immediately in the drive-through lane with scorching hot french fries and a customized burger (hold the mayo, no pickle please). We want things done our way, fixed to our perfection.
Unfortunately, our way is not always the right way.
Proverbs 14:12, “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.”
Proverbs 14:15, “The simple believe anything, but the prudent give thought to their steps.”
We took a family vacation to Disney World one time and I can remember how dreadfully crowded it was there that day. You could hardly budge inside the walls of the amusement park as people shoved and pushed to get on the rides. But then, a storm appeared as out of thin air. And the rains came down. And the floods came up. People ran out of the park that day in droves. But we decided to wait out the storm. We parked ourselves in a nice, cozy pizza parlor and took our time enjoying a peaceful, calm meal.
We outlasted the storm that day and went on to enjoy a fun-filled day at Disney without all the hustle and bustle. At different times in your life you will find yourself in this kind of situation. You will be in the midst of a storm that you didn’t cause and that you can’t control, and you will have no choice but to wait it out. These kinds of problems are often the most difficult to face, because they make us feel so helpless.
If you have the time today, read Habakkuk 3. What did Habakkuk have to do in v. 16?
God gives Habakkuk a vision of the Holy One coming from Edom to judge Israel’s enemy, the Chaldeans. It scares the living tar out of the prophet Habakkuk as he exclaims, “
I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us.” (3:16).
What is he talking about? Has he seen the Chaldeans? No, he saw the Lord. And it is at this point that Habakkuk becomes resolved that God has everything under control. In other words, he knew that he couldn’t escape the invading army, but he also knew God would eventually judge the Chaldeans as well.
When we can’t escape our circumstances, we must trust God’s ultimate plan. He has everything under control. We become afraid when we realize that we have lost control. What we need to realize is that although we are no longer in the driver’s seat,
God never loses control. He always knows where He is headed.
Read Habakkuk 3:17-19. What does the prophet do in verse 18 despite his circumstances? Where does he go in v. 19?
“17 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,
18 Yet I will exult in the LORD,
I will rejoice in the God of my salvation.
19 The Lord GOD is my strength,
And He has made my feet like hinds’ feet,
And makes me walk on my high places.
For the choir director, on my stringed instruments.”
We must realize that our problems don’t have to make us miserable. Whenever we face problems, we may not be able to do anything about the problem, but we don’t have to let it make us downcast.
Abraham Lincoln once said, “A person is as happy as he makes up his mind to be.” Ask God today to help you see your life from His point of view.