ANCIENT WORDS, MODERN WORLD WEEK 5: WHEN GOD DOESN’T MAKE SENSE (HABAKKUK)

We have probably all asked the question (or at least heard someone else ask), “why does God allow bad things to happen to good people?” Or the reverse: “why does God allow good things to happen to bad people?”

There will be seasons of life when nothing makes sense. You pray. You ask. You wait. And the answer just doesn’t’ seem to come (or doesn’t come the way you would like).  It is in these moments that we want to ask, “God where are you? Do you hear me? Do you care?”

Habakkuk is one of the most honest books in the Bible.  He doesn’t start with praise, but with protest. Judah is corrupt. There is violence, injustice, and moral collapse. God’s covenant people look nothing like those who are following God, and so Habakkuk’s complaint and questions are “How long, Lord? Why do You tolerate wrongdoing? Why are You silent?” Habakkuk is confused. He doesn’t pretend it’s fine. He brings it to God.

When we are faced with those same hard questions, our enemy will try to make us feel like it is hopeless. He will trick us into thinking that if we ask God those hard questions, somehow we have failed in our attempt to have a strong faith in God. But don’t be fooled: faith asks hard questions.  Faith isn’t pretending nothing is wrong.

You are allowed to bring your confusion, your questions, and your concerns to God. He is big enough to handle them and sure enough that we can trust him even when it doesn’t make sense. The Bible tells us that “God’s ways are not our ways, and his thoughts are not our thoughts.” We try to see things through our eyes, but God sees differently. It doesn’t always make sense and it’s not always comforting, but we can trust in a faithful loving God.

Habakkuk’s response was, “I will stand watch and I will wait.” That’s faith. And faith isn’t having all the answers; it is choosing to trust when answers don’t come (and don’t come fast enough for our liking). I hope that, when things don’t make sense, our response would be the same as Habakkuk. I will wait and I will watch and I will worship and I will see what the Lord will do.