FROM FRUSTRATION TO CONFIDENCE
Rev. Joey Crisostomo
Director for Central Operations
May 16, 2010
Key Scripture
Habakkuk 1-3
2 How long, O LORD, must I call for help,
but you do not listen? (Hab. 1:2)
17 Though the fig tree does not bud
and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen
and no cattle in the stalls,
18 yet I will rejoice in the LORD,
I will be joyful in God my Savior.
(Hab. 3:17-19)
A BRIEF INTRODUCTION:
– The difference between the beginnings of the book and the end of the book is striking.
– Habakkuk faced a world that seemed to be out of control, a world in which there was no justice. Habakkuk struggled with the seeming inconsistency between the revealed nature of God and the evidence he saw in the world around him.
– But Habakkuk in the end rejoices in God, concluding with one of the greatest statements of faith in the entire Bible.
A SIMPLE OUTLINE
– In Habakkuk One, Habakkuk is worrying and focusing on his problem. He is sparring with God.
– In Habakkuk Two, Habakkuk is waiting and trusting In his God. He drops his weary too short arms.
– In Habakkuk Three, Habakkuk is worshiping and focusing on his God. He takes off the gloves and falls to the mate in surrender.
What to Do When We Are Frustrated? (From Frustration to Confidence)
1. Honestly admit and face your Emotion.
2 How long, O LORD, must I call for help, but you do not listen?
Someone once said…A healthy heart is fully aware of deep emotion— and can name it.
2. Bring all your questions, doubts and feelings directly to God.
2 How long, O LORD, must I call for help
13b Why then do you tolerate the treacherous? Why are you silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?
3. Establish a spiritual context in which to think through the problem.
12 O LORD, are you not from everlasting? My God, my Holy One,
13 Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong.
4. Keep in mind that no matter how dark and difficult things may appear God is always in control.
“The just shall live by his faith” Hab. 2:4
– We may not always know what He is doing, Isa. 55:8-9; but we can always trust Him to do what is right,
– We may not always understand His plan, but we can trust Him to have the best plan, Jer. 29:11; Rom. 8:28.
5. Decide to face everything that comes not in the spirit of resignation but in the spirit of rejoicing.
18 yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior
6. Remind yourself that confidence during crisis is found in a source outside ourselves.
– The Lord GOD is my strength, and He has made my feet like the feet of a deer, And makes me walk on my high places. (v.19)
– He said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
(2 Corinthians 12:9)