ForgottenWoman

But I Don’t See Him Doing It!

For every believer seeking to walk in obedience to the Lord, what we are discussing is a lifestyle of obedience. A lifestyle of forgiveness.  How dedicated are we to forgiving the ones who hurt us, who have abused us or our families for years?  How dedicated are we to walking daily with a humility that is determined to forgive all offenses – large and small?  Learning to walk this walk is a process – just as forgiving individual offenses is a process. There will be ups and downs; the constant battle within us is to respond and react with forgiveness.   

If we are honest, and if we interact with other “sinners” at anytime, then each of us is in this fight – it is’ one of the biggest battles within a believer – the natural response of wanting justice for ourselves, of wanting peace for ourselves, of wanting to be loved and treated well by others versus the God response of overlooking small offenses and choosing to forgive the monstrous ones.  

God promises to bless our faithfulness and obedience in this area, and we must live this lifestyle of obedience in forgiveness, believing that our Father/God is trustworthy.  We have to believe that He is working where we can’t see…  pressing on in obedience even when it feels like those whom we are forgiving are the ones benefiting from their actions. This is where our faith takes over.  

Let’s take a look in Habakkuk and see where the prophet was questioning God.  He was wondering, like you and I often do, if God was working in the situation at all!   The prophet Habakkuk asked God, “How long, O LORD, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, ‘Violence!’ but you do not save?” He questioned God’s apparent inactivity and tolerance of wickedness and injustice in Judah. (Have you ever been hurt deeply and cried out to God for Him to deal justly, while you are seeking to forgive the offender out of obedience?)  

In this passage (Habakkuk 1), we see a plea for God’s intervention!  The prophet was frustrated that his persistent prayers about the injustice and violence surrounding him seemed to go unanswered.   In essence, he was questioning God’s silence. He was dismayed that God seemed to be idly watching the wrongdoing, allowing strife and contention to flourish.   Habakkuk saw that the law had become powerless and that the wicked were perverting justice, overwhelming the righteous.   (You and I never feel this way, right?) 

In response to Habakkuk’s anguished questions, God answered that He was indeed acting—but in a shocking and unexpected way. He revealed that He was raising up the Chaldeans (Babylonians), “that ruthless and greedy nation,” to be the instrument of judgment against Judah.  This is a stark reminder that who God chooses to use to bring about justice are not always who you and I would choose and often not in the way you and I would choose.

Read through the book of Habakkuk to see where God answered him, and he still doubted.  Ugh.  Yes, I do that too!   God then answered him with very direct words that told him that those who obey the Lord will see the goodness of the Lord, and those who seem to be riding high after hurting God’s people will suffer big!  You and I need to get to the place in our lives where we trust God’s promises!  We obey Him (our part) and trust Him fully with the results. (His part) When it comes to matters of the heart, places that we have been hurt by those we trust – well, our faith is often tested.  

 I want to dig a bit deeper into how you and I  keep up this fight.  How do we endure day in and day out when to our earthly minds and bodies the battle seems to just go on and on without realizing the blessing of the Lord, the reward of the Lord for our obedience, the consequences for those who have hurt us so deeply? HOW do I continue to choose God’s way, regardless…  

Let me challenge you with this statement.     

“Whatever strengthens my spirit weakens my flesh!”

In our next article, we will talk about how we strengthen our spirit and weaken our flesh.