Rejoice in the Lord Always and Again I Say, Rejoice

Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls:  

~Habakkuk 3:17

In verse 17 things seem to be rather bleak. The prophet's subject is famine -- referring to a widespread scarcity of food. After reading that verse I thought about another famine -- a famine of the worst kind. Listen to this verse found in Amos 8:11-12: “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.” Doesn’t this, in some ways, seem to apply to the world today?

While trying to get the Word of the Lord out through this blog and Facebook it seems a famine of "true" Christianity plagues our land. People would much rather see a joke or funny video than hear and read God’s Word. They may see a verse that makes them feel good and pass it on while not even realizing the true power in it, causing its impact on their life to be short-lived. Even people who call themselves “Christian” or religious would rather talk about ballgames, shopping, and what award their child received this week than getting the Word of Life out to a lost and dying world. People are searching and seeking for significance and meaning to this life, but are looking in the wrong places, to the wrong things, and the wrong people. It is up to us – to those who love God -- to show them the way.

It gets discouraging when there seems to be a lack of love for the One who died for us even among those who are supposed to be our brothers and sisters in Christ. And as I try to minister to others it seems that satan will give me no rest in his whispers of, “Why don’t you give up? No one cares about what you are doing.” BUT, what satan hates is just after he has enticed me to look at bleak circumstances and get discouraged then my Deliverer comes along beside me and shouts, “Don’t give up! I am with you and I care!” Just when I’m about to give up God shows me what to do to overcome the enemy.  And this is what He showed me: 

Verse 18 of the same chapter reveals what the prophet Habakkuk did during this time of famine. He found joy!

3:18  Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.  

Though satan seems to be getting the upper hand, everything seems to be gone, and there is a famine in our realm of existence, we CAN rejoice in God. Though circumstances reach their lowest point, and things seem to be so out of kilter to the way we think they should go, we can have joy because He has promised to deliver His children—and HE WILL. He has assured us many times, "Child just endure this period of trial. Trust in Me. I love you and I am with you. I am working all for your good. Joy WILL come in the morning!" 

When Habakkuk rejoiced in God, even in this difficult time, something happened – he found strength.

3:19  The LORD God is my strength, and He will make my feet like hinds' feet, and He will make me to walk upon mine high places.

And when he found strength in the Lord he was given the ability to overcome his circumstance. The last part of verse 19 gives us an imagery of the herald, the runner (an official messenger and representative of a king in former times) running to get the word out to whomever the king demanded -- and of the deer -- a deer is known for its fleetness of foot and its ability to bound over any obstacle in its way. For us, while running the race set before us, God is our strength. (Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. ~Hebrews 12:1)

He enables us to overcome. He helps us to climb the high hills, an image of our reward in the Kingdom of God. He is the One that will bring us our reward. He is the One who enables us to run and to leap over our obstacles. God is our strength! Hallelujah! What a Savior! 

And in that...

Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice. ~Philippians 4:4

These scriptures and this word from the Lord sure blessed me. I truly hope they will do the same for you and be a help to you in your daily walk with the Lord.  May He bless you today over and above what you are able to receive! 

With Much Love, 

The Princess Warrior

P.S. This was written on a Sunday morning the day it was posted while going through a bought of food poisoning. The Lord is with us always...even with our head hung over a toilet...again I say, Rejoice!  =)

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Copyright © 2009 The Princess Warrior Ministries. All articles are copyrighted on the date they are posted, unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. Permission granted for not-for-sale reproduction in exact form including copyright and web address. Other uses require written permission. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.