“I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.” –Habakkuk 3:18
The Ruin Pictured— vs. 17 “ 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:“
The Resolve Promised–vs. 18 “Yet I will rejoice in the LORD….”
The Reason Proclaimed—vs. 18 “..the God of my salvation” & vs.19
The Results Predicted–vs. 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..” Notice the words “is” and “will”–because of who God is we can predict what He will do, and it’s all good!
The Reasoning Pondered
Several years ago I came across this statement and, although the author is unknown to me, it has blessed my heart greatly: “If ever, as we pass through this wilderness, we feel one drop of solid joy, of true happiness, it must flow, it can flow only from one source–the manifestation of Christ to our souls. This joy may be very transient–we may have to look upon it through a vista of many years; and doubts and fears may becloud the mind whether we ever rejoiced truly in Christ, or whether our joy might not have been “the joy of the hypocrite” that perishes. And yet we are brought to this point–we can find true joy and peace in Him alone. Sin, the world, the things of time and sense, business, amusement, pleasure so called, afford now no lasting joy; there is an aching void, a feeling of dreariness and misery connected with everything short of divine communications of mercy, favor, and love. So that though we may not be enabled to say, ‘we greatly rejoice at all times, in all places, at all seasons, in the Lord;’ yet we can come to this point–we can rejoice in no other; we can take real pleasure in nothing else. One smile from the Lord, one word from his lips, one gracious breaking in of the light of his countenance does, while it lasts, communicate joy; and from no other quarter, from no other source can a moment’s true joy be drawn.”
