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Nuggets in Habakkuk Part 5 - Yet I Will Rejoice... · Stornoway Free Church of Scotland - Sermons

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Well, we begin our worship this morning by singing to God's praise in Psalm 32,
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the Scottish Psalter version, Psalm 32. We're going to sing from verse 7 to 11.
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It's page 244.
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Thou art my hiding place, thou shalt from trouble keep me free.
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Thou with songs of deliverance about shalt compass me.
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I will instruct thee and they teach the way that thou shalt go.
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And with my eye upon thee set, I will direction show.
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We'll sing from verse 7 to 11 to God's praise.
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The song of deliverance about shalt compass me.
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I will instruct thee and lead thee, the way that thou shalt go.
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And with my eye upon thee set, I will direction show.
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Then be not like the horse or mule, which you not understand.
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I will instruct thee, the way that thou shalt go.
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Unto the love that we hid his sorrow shall burn.
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At him that trusteth in the Lord mercy shall compass Christ.
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Yea, righteous him the Lord be glad, in him to hear thee joys.
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O he that upright tar in heart, for joy lift a pure voice.
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Bow our heads in a short word of prayer. Let us pray.
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Amen.
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As we gather here in the church and as the young ones soon go out to the Sunday school and the tweenies and the Bible class.
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We do pray your blessing on each one.
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Thankful for the teachers, the children and for your promise to meet with us.
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For your promise to speak to us through your word.
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And may we all have that longing, that hunger to hear what you have to say to us.
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We thank you for your word, the Bible that we have before us.
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For it is your truth.
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And help us to lean upon it and rely on it.
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For all that it tells us.
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For all that it warns us of.
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And all the blessings that it tells us that are ours in Christ Jesus.
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So hear our prayers.
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Continue with us.
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Go before us in all of this day.
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And we ask it all over the forgiveness of our sins.
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In Jesus' name.
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Amen.
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Well before the young ones go out.
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Just want to say a few words to you.
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One of the questions that we are often asked.
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Maybe even as you were coming into the church this morning.
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Somebody asked you this question.
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Maybe when you got up in the morning.
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Somebody asked you this question.
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It's the question.
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How are you?
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Remember when Mordor Campbell was preaching here at the Communions.
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That was one of the questions he was asking us as a congregation.
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How are you?
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It's a very personal question.
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And it's a question we're going to be thinking about this morning in our service.
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As we look at a man called Habakkuk.
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We've been looking at the book of Habakkuk.
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And seeing how God was speaking to him.
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And reminding him.
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And teaching him of all the things that God was going to do.
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And one of the questions I would love to ask of Habakkuk is.
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How are you?
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And I think today we're going to be seeing that really at the end of the book of Habakkuk.
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We get an answer to that question of how are you Habakkuk.
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But how would you answer that question?
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How are you?
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And what about when we think of God and what he's saying to us.
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When we think of his Bible.
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And how he speaks to us through it.
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And he's really asking us all today.
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How are you?
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How are you when you come to my word?
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How are you in life?
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How are you getting on?
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What are you trusting in?
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What are you believing in?
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I want to just tell you a wee story about a little girl called Mary Jones.
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And she lived in Wales over 200 years ago.
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And when she was the age of nine.
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She used to love going to church.
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And she used to love hearing the minister speaking from the Bible.
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And she was so aware that God was speaking to her through it.
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And at that age she thought to herself.
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I would love a Bible for myself.
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Now we've probably all got Bibles in our homes.
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I'm sure many have got Bibles in front of you today.
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Or maybe on your phone or something like that.
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Bibles are so easy to get.
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But when Mary Jones was living in Wales in that time.
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The late 1700s.
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The Bibles weren't as common as they are today.
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And her parents didn't have much money.
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And Bibles were expensive to buy.
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And she told her mum that she really wanted a Bible.
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And she knew how difficult it was.
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So she said to her mother.
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I'm going to save up to buy a Bible.
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I'm going to work.
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To work for different people.
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And get paid little bits of work.
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And I'm going to save up to buy a Bible.
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And it took her six years.
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Till she was the age of 15.
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She didn't give up.
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She kept saving all her money that she was earning.
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All so she could go and buy a Bible.
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And when she had enough money.
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She had to go a long way to get the Bible.
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It wasn't a case of jumping in the car.
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Or jumping on a bus.
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She had to go and walk to a village.
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To buy a Bible.
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A village that was 25 miles away.
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But even that didn't put her off.
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So she set out one day.
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Took her money.
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And she walked all that way.
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It was just rough paths and over hills.
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It was hard going.
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But she was so determined.
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She wanted a Bible.
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And when she got to the town.
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The village.
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She bought a Bible.
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And then she made the journey back home.
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25 miles back.
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And she had her own Bible.
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And this was the most precious thing to her.
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Because she knew now she could read of God.
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Asking her.
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How are you?
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Every day.
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Whenever she wanted to.
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She could learn more of God.
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And it's so important for us today.
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To see how precious God's Word is.
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And to have that same longing.
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That same desire.
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As Mary Jones.
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To have the Bible for ourselves.
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And I'm sure we don't have to save up six years.
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We can go home today.
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And we've got the Bible in front of us.
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And start looking at it.
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Reading it.
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And seeing for yourself.
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The wonder of how God speaks.
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And how precious He is.
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So may God bless these thoughts to us all.
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We'll say the Lord's Prayer together now.
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Amen.
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Our Father which art in heaven.
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Hallowed be thy name.
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Thy kingdom come.
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Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
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Give us this day our daily bread.
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And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.
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And lead us not into temptation.
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But deliver us from evil.
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For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory forever.
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Amen.
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Amen.
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I will again sing to God's praise.
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Now we're going to sing in Psalm 40.
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In the Scottish.
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In the Sing Psalms version.
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Psalm 40.
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On page 59 of the Psalm books.
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Sorry, it's not page 59.
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It's page 50.
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Page 50 of the Psalm books.
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Psalm 40.
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We'll sing from verse 1 to verse 5.
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I waited long upon the Lord.
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He heard my cry and turned to me.
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He raised me from the slimy pit and from the mire.
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He pulled me free.
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We'll sing Psalm 40 verse 1 to 5 to God's praise.
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I waited long upon the Lord.
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He heard my cry and turned to me.
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He raised me from the slimy pit and from the mire.
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He pulled me free.
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He said my feet on solid rock.
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A place to stand both firm and strong.
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He heard my cry and forth.
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He heard my cry and turned to me.
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He heard my cry and turned to me.
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A joyful hymn of praise to God.
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Then he will live with godly cheer, and on the Lord alone rely.
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Blessed are they who trust the Lord, who shan the pride and cross the night.
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The wonders you have done, O Lord, how many and how great they are.
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Your plans for us are far beyond, our power to number or defame.
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We're going to turn to read now in the book of Habakkuk in the Old Testament.
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You'll find this around page 950 of the Bibles.
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Habakkuk, we're going to read chapter 3.
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We have Habakkuk's prayer, as we've looked at previously.
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And then this morning we're going to be looking at the last part, verse 7 to 19.
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But we'll read the whole of this chapter.
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A prayer of Habakkuk, the prophet, according to Shaganoth.
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O Lord, I have heard the report of you, and your work, O Lord, do I fear.
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In the midst of the years, revive it.
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In the midst of the years, make it known.
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In wrath, remember mercy.
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God came from Taman, and the Holy One from Mount Paran.
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His splendor covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise.
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His brightness was like the light.
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Rays flashed from his hand, and there he veiled his power.
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Before him went pestilence and plague followed at his heels.
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He stood and measured the earth.
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He looked and shook the nations.
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Then the eternal mountains were scattered.
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The everlasting hills sank low.
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Whose were the everlasting ways?
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I saw the tents of cushion in affliction.
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The curtains of the land of Midian did tremble.
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Was your wrath against the rivers, O Lord?
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Was your anger against the rivers?
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Or your indignation against the sea?
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When you rode on your horses, on your chariot of salvation.
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You stripped the sheath from your bow, calling for many arrows.
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You split the earth with rivers.
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The mountains saw you and writhed.
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The raging waters swept on.
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The deep gave forth its voice.
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It lifted its hands on high.
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The sun and moon stood still in their place.
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At the light of your arrows as they sped.
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At the flash of your glittering spear.
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You marched through the earth in fury.
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You threshed the nations in anger.
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You went out for the salvation of your people.
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For the salvation of your anointed.
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You crushed the head of the house of the wicked.
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Laying him bare from thigh to neck.
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You pierced with his own arrows the heads of his warriors.
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Who came like a whirlwind to scatter me.
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Rejoicing as if to devour the poor in secret.
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You trampled the sea with your horses.
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The surging of mighty waters.
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I hear and my body trembles.
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My lips quiver at the sound.
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Rottenness enters into my bones.
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My legs tremble beneath me.
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Yet I will quietly wait for the day of trouble to come upon people who invade us.
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Though the fig tree should not blossom.
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Nor fruit beyond the vines.
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The produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food.
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The flock be cut off from the fold.
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And there be no herd in the stalls.
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Yet I will rejoice in the Lord.
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I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
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God the Lord is my strength.
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He makes my feet like the deer.
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He makes me tread on my high places.
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To the choirmaster with stringed instruments.
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May God bless that reading from his word.
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And again just bow our heads in a word of prayer.
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Let us pray.
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Lord our gracious God as we continue in our worship of you.
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We thank you again for your word.
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For your truth.
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A truth that we would seek to hold precious.
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A truth that we would seek to honour with our lives and with all that we are.
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A truth that we would follow.
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For in following your commandments our blessing.
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And in turning away we see your blessings so often taken away.
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And we pray Lord that you would heal our land.
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That you would heal our land from the turning away from your word.
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From the rejection of it.
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Even the forbidding of it in so many ways and places.
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It's turning more violent in so many ways.
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And we just see an anger that comes about as we turn away from you.
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As we look to our own ways and our own paths.
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As we lean on our own understanding and wisdom.
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We recognise the foolishness of it as we see your word.
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And yet so often we get caught up in it.
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And so we pray Lord that you will teach us.
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That you will humble us.
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That we would not come to see days like Habakkuk.
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When there was so much destruction and devastation.
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When there was so much violence and wickedness.
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Although we see it in part around us Lord.
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We know that days could so easily become worse.
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But we pray Lord that we would see.
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That in wrath you would remember mercy.
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That you as Lord and God of all would have mercy upon us.
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That you would revive your work in our midst.
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That you would revive your work in our day.
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That we would see your blessing poured out upon us.
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And we know that comes through obedience to you.
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And so humble us before you today.
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Teach us through your truth.
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Bring us into that relationship where we would say.
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Even as Habakkuk.
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Yet I will rejoice in the Lord.
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For God the Lord is my strength.
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And may we come in our own hearts and in our lives.
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For that to be our confession.
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And we do pray for your church oh Lord.
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As we are part of it here.
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And as we see it around us.
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As people near and far.
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We pray for you to build up your church.
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We pray for your blessing.
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Of your spirit upon us.
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Leading us.
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Guiding us.
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And helping us.
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In all of our ways.
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We pray to know.
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What it is to live.
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By faith.
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Even as we have seen in Habakkuk.
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The righteous shall live by faith.
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We pray for that faith in our own hearts.
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And in our lives.
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And in our congregations.
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And in our church far and wide.
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That we would be a people who live in dependence upon you.
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Trusting that you are able to provide.
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And so we lean upon you for all of these things.
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So remember as Lord we pray.
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As we thank you for all in our congregation.
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We thank you again for all our young people.
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And as the schools go on holiday this week.
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We pray for them.
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For the teaching staff.
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And all the staff in our schools.
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We pray for a time of rest and refreshment for them all.
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A time of encouragement.
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And a time when they will be able to step back.
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From the busyness of life in that way.
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But just to enjoy a time of refreshment.
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In either staying at home or going away.
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Or whatever it might be.
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That your blessing would be upon all.
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We pray too Lord for the work of our congregation.
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We thank you for all going on in our church.
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Not just on the Lord's days.
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We thank you for our services.
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Both here and in the Gaelic.
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For the youth fellowship.
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For the Sunday school.
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And all the young ones.
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We thank you for all of these things.
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And we pray that you would bless it.
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That you would bless abundantly the word.
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That is proclaimed in these ways.
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We pray that through the week as well.
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That as the monthly meeting is taking place tomorrow evening.
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God willing.
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As there are meetings throughout the week.
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We think of the vacancy committee.
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As it meets on Tuesday.
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Pray for wisdom and guidance.
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For all on the committee.
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And for the discussions that take place.
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That your spirit would lead and guide in all of these things.
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Pray for the prayer meetings.
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That we would see that as such a wonderful privilege.
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And a place where we should be if we are able.
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That we would gather to unite our hearts.
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And praise and worship and prayer to you.
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That we would see your blessing on the 55+.
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Thankful for all involved in running that.
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And attending it.
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Pray for the blessing of your spirit upon them.
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This week as well.
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And we do thank you for all of these things.
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And many more Lord.
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As we think of all the activities going on.
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And we just ask for your blessing in it all.
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We thank you for the work of the congregations around us as well.
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We pray that together we would see the blessing of God upon us.
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We think of the communion seasons just now.
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As they soon draw to a close.
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We thank you for all the preachers who have come from near and far.
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To proclaim the wonders of the gospel.
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And we remember them in Bach and in North Harris today.
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As they are gathered for that purpose.
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For remembering the Lord's death until he comes.
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In that significant way.
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We pray for your encouragement to the congregations there.
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For your blessing upon them.
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And for all the services that have taken place.
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And will take place next weekend as well.
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We do pray for your blessing in all of these things.
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We thank you Lord that you are a God who is not sleeping.
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That you are working.
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That you are active.
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That your word is powerful.
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And we pray that together we would know the wonder of your salvation.
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The wonder of the one who is your son Christ Jesus.
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Who came into the world to save sinners.
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That is a great gospel message.
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And we pray that we will come to know the wonder of a personal relationship with him.
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So hear our prayers.
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Remember us in our homes and our families.
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In our communities at this time.
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In all our different needs.
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In our sorrow and sadness of loss and grief.
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In the uncertainties of ill health.
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Or awaiting results.
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Or awaiting procedures.
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Whether we are confined to our homes.
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Or whether we are anxious about family.
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Work situations.
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Whatever it may be.
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We pray that in all our troubles.
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Yet we might rejoice in the Lord.
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So hear our prayers.
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Continue with us and pardon us in all our sins.
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We ask it all.
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In Jesus name.
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And for his sake.
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Amen.
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Amen.
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Before we turn back to Habakkuk.
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We are going to sing again in Psalm 4.
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In the Sing Psalm.
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Psalm 4.
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It is on page 4 of the Psalm books.
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We will sing from verse 3 down to the end of the Psalm.
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Know that the Lord has set apart the godly as his own.
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The Lord will hear me when I call and my request make known.
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We will sing from verse 3 down to the end of the Psalm.
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To God's praise.
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The Lord will hear me when I call and my request make known.
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In the Anger do not wake us fall.
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In the Anger do not wake us fall.
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Consider and be still.
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We send a righteous sacrifice.
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And wait upon his well.
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And wait upon his well.
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Oh, who can show us any good.
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I hear so many say.
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Oh, Lord, shine on us with your eyes.
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Show us your face.
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Show us your face.
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The Lord will hear me when I call and my heart.
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The Lord will hear me when I call and my heart.
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I will hear me when I call and my heart.
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You filled my heart with greater joy that others may have found,
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as they rejoiced at harvest time when faith and wine the blend.
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I will lie down and sleep in peace, my heart will rest with you.
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For you alone, O gracious Lord, will keep me safe and sure.
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We're going to turn back then to a reading in Habakkuk in chapter 3.
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And the end of this chapter, we're in verse 17 to 19.
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As we were saying to the young ones, one of the most common questions we'd often asked is,
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how are you?
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And we have a variety of answers to that question so often from the standard answer, I'm fine.
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And we move on or to the more in-depth and more honest answers,
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where we feel more able to pour out our hearts to the person who's asked the question.
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We hear the question often, but I wonder how many other people you would want to ask that question of.
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Not just people you know around us, but maybe perhaps people in different situations,
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maybe past or present.
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Think of perhaps world leaders today and the strains that they have in trying to lead different nations.
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Maybe Keir Starmer or Joe Biden or someone like that.
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Would you want to come alongside them and ask the question, you know,
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how are you in the midst of everything that's going on?
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Maybe it's a famous figure from history.
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You would want to be with them in a certain situation and ask, how are you?
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I think of John Newton, the author of Amazing Grace and other hymns,
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and his conversion that happened while he was in a storm at sea.
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Because of my own background, I often think of that situation.
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I would love to have been there with him in some ways and seen him at his low point there,
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when he's seeing just the frailty of life, his life and all that it's entailed,
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how wrong it was, and yet he came to see the wonder of the amazing grace of God
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and to ask him, how are you in the midst of all of that?
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And maybe there's characters in Scripture you would want to come alongside them
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and ask them that question, you know, how are you?
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Think of people like Job in the Old Testament.
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And very often when you think of that question of how are they in the midst of situations,
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you find in Scripture an answer given.
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Job, as you maybe know, in his life experience, he lost so much in his life.
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There was so much devastation that came his way.
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In chapter 1 of the book, you read of how everything just was taken from him,
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almost in the blink of an eye.
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He lost his livestock.
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He lost his children.
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There just seemed to be tragedy after tragedy coming upon him.
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And you come alongside, how are you, Job, in the midst of all of this?
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Well, in chapter 1, verse 21 to 22, he says this, Job himself says this,
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Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I shall return.
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The Lord gave.
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The Lord has taken away.
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Blessed be the name of the Lord.
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You see their confidence.
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You see their faith.
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It says in the next verse after that,
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In all this, Job did not sin or charge God with any wrong.
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There was a faith in the midst of everything that was going on.
30:03
Think of Paul as he wrote the letter to the Philippians,
30:07
a letter of rejoicing.
30:10
But in the midst of what was happening in his experience,
30:13
you come alongside and ask,
30:14
Paul, how are you in prison?
30:15
How are you in the midst of everything that you're seeing happening around you?
30:19
Well, we see in chapter 4 of Philippians, verse 11,
30:23
how thankful he is that the people there have remembered him.
30:27
They've sent him a gift.
30:29
But he says in verse 13,
30:31
Not that I am speaking of being in need,
30:33
for I have learned,
30:34
in whatever situation I am to be content,
30:37
I know how to be brought low,
30:39
and I know how to abound.
30:41
In any and every circumstance,
30:43
I have learned the secret to facing plenty and hunger,
30:46
abundance and need.
30:48
I can do all things through Christ,
30:51
or through him, it says,
30:52
who strengthens me.
30:55
There is confidence in the midst of trials.
31:00
And so here in Habakkuk,
31:01
as we've been going through this book of Habakkuk,
31:04
we've been seeing the kind of challenges
31:06
that Habakkuk and the people have been facing up to.
31:09
We've seen in chapter 1
31:11
how God was going to do a work,
31:13
a work that they could hardly understand or comprehend.
31:16
Even as he told them,
31:18
God working in mysterious ways,
31:21
that he was going to bring the Babylonians upon them.
31:25
It didn't seem to make sense.
31:28
And yet we have seen
31:29
how Habakkuk has been with the people,
31:33
trying to encourage them,
31:34
trying to strengthen them.
31:35
And we've seen encouragements like
31:37
the righteous shall live by faith.
31:41
We've seen too how he had hope.
31:43
In chapter 2, verse 14,
31:45
for the earth will be filled with the knowledge
31:47
of the glory of the Lord
31:48
as the waters cover the sea.
31:51
There is that hope
31:53
that things are going to be better.
31:55
Chapter 3, as we've read in verse 2 there,
31:59
we see his prayer,
32:01
a prayer that in the midst of it says,
32:03
in the midst of the years,
32:03
revived in the midst of the years,
32:05
make it known in wrath,
32:08
remember mercy.
32:09
So Habakkuk has been living in a day
32:14
when things are difficult,
32:16
things are challenging.
32:17
In the darkness of the day,
32:19
he didn't see God and think,
32:21
well, God just cannot change this situation.
32:25
God cannot make a difference in this situation.
32:28
Yes, he had his questions,
32:30
as you see in verse 3 of chapter 1.
32:33
Why do you make me see iniquity?
32:35
Why do you idly look at wrong
32:37
as if God has no concern?
32:41
But yet, as you come alongside Habakkuk
32:44
and ask him the question today,
32:46
how are you?
32:47
How are you in the midst of all of this?
32:50
Well, today we come to our final nugget of gold.
32:54
That's why we've been looking at Habakkuk,
32:56
how in the midst of all the challenges,
32:58
you find these nuggets of gold,
33:00
precious verses that speak of the wonder of God.
33:05
And today we're going to look at the last one here
33:08
in verse 17 to 19.
33:10
And really it's one long nugget of gold.
33:14
It's Habakkuk's answer to the question,
33:17
how are you?
33:19
And that's the way we're going to look at it this morning.
33:22
Under that question, Habakkuk, how are you?
33:25
And we see that in each verse,
33:27
he gives us an answer.
33:29
And he gives us an answer
33:31
that ultimately shows that he is rejoicing.
33:35
And he's rejoicing, not oblivious to the situation.
33:38
He sees the reality of all that's going on around him,
33:42
but he sees that he can rejoice in the Lord
33:45
because God is his strength.
33:49
And so that's the three things.
33:50
You really got the first word of each verse
33:52
are going to be your three points.
33:54
You have though in verse 17.
33:57
You have yet in verse 18.
33:59
And you have God in verse 19.
34:03
So we're going to go through these three things.
34:06
Habakkuk, how are you?
34:10
Well, in verse 17, we have though.
34:13
And here is Habakkuk seeing the reality of the situation.
34:19
He's not oblivious to all that's going on around him.
34:24
There's a lot of trouble around him.
34:27
Serious trouble.
34:29
Grave trouble.
34:31
Trouble that has its consequences
34:33
from turning away from God.
34:36
As we've gone through this book of Habakkuk,
34:38
we've seen the backdrop to it all
34:41
is this abandonment of God.
34:43
Turning away from God.
34:45
And judgment is coming upon them.
34:49
An unbelievable hardship is coming upon them.
34:53
We read of it there in chapter 3.
34:55
You see the wrath.
34:57
You see the anger.
34:57
You see the devastation that's going on
35:00
even in chapter 3.
35:03
And there are all these things going on.
35:06
And God has sent this judgment upon them
35:10
through the Babylonians, this wicked enemy.
35:13
And in chapter 1, verse 5, he was saying,
35:18
I am doing a work you would not believe.
35:22
It's almost through the strangest of providences,
35:26
through the strangest of works, God is working.
35:30
God is still at work.
35:33
And that's a nugget in itself.
35:35
Although it's hard for us to understand,
35:37
as we saw looking at that part of Habakkuk,
35:40
there are things that we see around us
35:42
that we cannot understand that leave us
35:44
with the same kind of questions
35:45
as Habakkuk had in chapter 1.
35:48
Almost thinking, Lord, why have you left us?
35:52
And yet what it is, is God saying,
35:54
I am doing a work,
35:55
even in the strangest of providences,
35:58
I am doing a work in your midst.
36:01
And so Habakkuk has this reality.
36:05
He sees what's going on around him.
36:08
And that's the background of the though of verse 17.
36:13
There's nothing positive in verse 17.
36:18
You see there, though,
36:19
the fig tree should not blossom,
36:22
nor fruit beyond the vines,
36:24
the produce of the olive fail,
36:26
and the fields yield no food,
36:29
the flock be cut off from the fold,
36:31
and there be no herd in the stalls.
36:35
There's nothing positive here.
36:39
Though, and all of these things are going on.
36:44
What are they saying to us?
36:46
What's verse 17?
36:47
What's Habakkuk saying to us in terms of,
36:50
how are you, Habakkuk?
36:51
Well, this is what is happening.
36:54
This is what is going on,
36:55
not just in my experience, he's saying,
36:57
but in our experience as a people,
36:59
he is saying,
37:00
the fig trees not blossoming,
37:02
the fruit is not on the vine,
37:04
the produce of the olive has failed,
37:06
the fields have no food,
37:08
the flock is cut off from the fold,
37:10
there is no herd in the stalls,
37:12
there is devastation all around.
37:16
And they are speaking of two things.
37:19
One is the destruction of the Babylonians,
37:23
the devastation that has come upon
37:26
an invasion from the Babylonians.
37:30
Things have been destroyed by them.
37:34
Everything that was important to them
37:36
as a people has been almost destroyed.
37:41
But it's not just about an invading army.
37:45
More importantly and more seriously,
37:47
it's about the withdrawal of God's blessing
37:50
and God's favor upon them.
37:54
When you look through that list in verse 17,
37:56
the those, the fig trees and the vines
38:00
were so important for the economy
38:02
because great produce meant
38:04
it was so financially important.
38:08
The economy suffered without it.
38:11
The fields producing no flock,
38:13
the food and the flocks being taken,
38:15
this meant hardship for the people.
38:18
The people were suffering.
38:20
And this was the work of the enemy,
38:23
but God was behind it as well.
38:28
And we see that as you look back
38:30
in the scriptures.
38:31
Obedience meant blessing,
38:34
but disobedience had consequences.
38:36
You just have to go back to Leviticus,
38:39
chapter 26,
38:41
where God outlines the importance of obedience
38:44
and what disobedience leads to.
38:47
And so much of it is to do with the flocks,
38:50
the herds and the harvest.
38:53
Because a rich harvest was always seen
38:57
as the blessing of God.
38:59
And he says in Leviticus 26, verse 3,
39:02
If you walk in my statutes
39:04
and observe my commandments
39:05
and do them,
39:06
then I will give you your rains
39:08
and their season,
39:10
and the land shall yield its increase,
39:12
and the trees of the field
39:13
shall yield their fruit.
39:15
Your threshing shall last
39:16
to the time of the grape harvest,
39:19
and the grape harvest shall last
39:20
to the time for sowing,
39:21
and you shall eat your bread
39:23
and be full
39:23
and dwell in your land securely.
39:26
There was blessing from obedience.
39:28
But disobedience,
39:30
turning from God,
39:31
had consequences.
39:33
In that same chapter,
39:34
Leviticus 26, verse 20,
39:37
it says when you turn away from God,
39:39
your strength shall be spent in vain,
39:42
your land shall not yield its increase,
39:44
the trees of the land
39:46
shall not yield their fruit.
39:49
There is consequences to disobedience.
39:54
And Habakkuk's day was one that saw
39:56
the reality of the devastation
39:58
of rejecting God.
40:01
The those that you have here
40:02
are the woes that came upon the people.
40:08
And when we look at this verse for ourselves,
40:11
how are you?
40:16
Though, it says,
40:18
well, what are our those today?
40:21
We will all have our those.
40:23
We will all have the things that we see
40:26
going on around us
40:28
or even within us
40:28
that leave us feeling like Habakkuk here.
40:32
You see the world.
40:34
And like Babylonia,
40:36
a cruel nation inflicting pain.
40:38
You look at the world today
40:39
and you see so many parts of the world
40:42
where there's pain inflicted
40:43
through wickedness and evil.
40:46
People are suffering.
40:48
We look at our leaders.
40:50
We look at our economy.
40:51
And what do we see?
40:52
We see greed.
40:53
And we see a people going without,
40:55
a people suffering in that way as well.
40:59
We look around ourselves
41:00
as an island here.
41:02
And you think of even just
41:03
these last few days
41:04
and what's been in the news
41:06
about Tesco seeking to open on a Sunday.
41:10
And you see all that going on
41:11
and you see how it goes against our culture,
41:14
as so many people say,
41:16
but more importantly,
41:17
against our faith,
41:19
against what the Word of God says.
41:22
You look at the church today
41:25
and we see a lack of interest
41:28
in so many ways in the church.
41:30
We see a turning away from the church.
41:32
We see so little encouragement at times
41:35
in the church.
41:38
We look at our own lives,
41:40
our individual lives,
41:41
and the difficulties we may have,
41:43
the challenges that we're going through.
41:45
We all have our those.
41:49
And we could list them off,
41:51
just like Habakkuk does here.
41:53
Though the fig tree should not blossom,
41:55
we have things that we could say for ourselves.
41:59
Though we're seeing hardship,
42:00
though we're seeing suffering,
42:02
though we're seeing attacks on our faith,
42:04
though we're seeing difficulties in our lives,
42:06
we all have our those.
42:08
Some may be seen as inflicted by others,
42:12
but some as a result of turning against God.
42:17
So what can we do?
42:20
Well, Habakkuk has his those.
42:22
How are you?
42:24
Well, there's all these challenges.
42:26
But the second thing we see is in verse 18.
42:29
How are you, Habakkuk?
42:30
Well, he says,
42:31
Yet I will rejoice in the Lord.
42:35
I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
42:42
In the midst of all of those,
42:44
the things that are difficult and trying,
42:47
he says,
42:48
Yet I will rejoice in the Lord.
42:52
We saw before how the realization
42:54
and understanding of the situation
42:56
of Habakkuk's day led to a boldness
42:59
and an urgency in Habakkuk coming
43:01
and pleading with God.
43:04
In the midst of the years,
43:06
revive it, he's crying out.
43:08
In wrath, remember, mercy.
43:11
And we see it also here
43:12
in the realities of the those.
43:14
We ask Habakkuk,
43:15
How are you?
43:16
And he says,
43:16
I am rejoicing in the Lord,
43:19
the God of my salvation.
43:22
And if you ask yourself today,
43:24
How are you in the midst of your those?
43:27
Of the things that you're seeing
43:28
going on around you
43:29
or in your own circumstances?
43:31
How are you?
43:32
Are you able to say,
43:34
Yet I will rejoice in the Lord.
43:38
I will take joy in the God
43:40
of my salvation.
43:44
Is that what you have?
43:46
In the midst of everything going on,
43:48
do you have that rejoicing?
43:51
The rejoicing that Paul had
43:53
in that letter to the Philippines
43:54
where he says,
43:55
Rejoice in the Lord always.
43:56
Again, I will say,
43:58
Rejoice.
43:59
In the midst of his own hardship,
44:01
he's able to rejoice.
44:04
Do we have that rejoicing in the Lord?
44:09
And why could Habakkuk say it?
44:12
Why can we rejoice in the Lord today?
44:15
Well, you see,
44:16
there's in the midst of all the trouble around him,
44:19
there's other nuggets that come to mind as well.
44:22
In verse 13 of this chapter,
44:25
in the midst of all that's going on,
44:26
it says,
44:27
You went out for the salvation of your people,
44:30
for the salvation of your anointed.
44:33
God was not idle.
44:36
God has gone out for the salvation of his people.
44:40
It would be true for Habakkuk's day.
44:43
It would be true in the New Testament days.
44:45
It's true in our day that God has gone out for the salvation of his people,
44:51
through his anointed.
44:54
For us, we can say it's through the Messiah,
44:58
the Lord Jesus Christ.
45:00
God has gone out to save his people.
45:04
So you can say,
45:06
almost like Habakkuk's prayer is answered,
45:09
in the midst of wrath,
45:11
remember mercy, he was pleading,
45:14
and God has shown mercy.
45:17
And still today,
45:19
in the midst of God's judgment,
45:21
in the midst of God's anger,
45:23
there is still mercy.
45:25
For God has gone out
45:27
for the salvation of his people.
45:31
And that is a reason to rejoice.
45:33
I will take joy in the God of my salvation,
45:37
Habakkuk says.
45:39
Can we say that today?
45:41
Do we see how God has gone out for our salvation?
45:45
And can we not rejoice in that?
45:48
When you think of salvation,
45:50
as you see it in the New Testament,
45:53
when you see it in Matthew chapter 1,
45:56
she will bear a son,
45:57
and she shall call his name Jesus,
45:59
for he shall save his people from their sins.
46:04
God has sent his son.
46:08
When you see it in the book of Acts chapter 4,
46:11
when Peter is preaching at Pentecost,
46:14
and he reminds the people,
46:16
there is salvation in no one else,
46:18
for there is no other name under heaven
46:20
given among men
46:21
by which we must be saved.
46:23
It is the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
46:28
John, in his letters,
46:31
in 1 John chapter 4, verse 14,
46:33
says this,
46:34
We have seen and testified
46:36
that the Father has sent his Son
46:38
to be the Savior of the world.
46:40
I will rejoice in the Lord.
46:45
I will take joy in the God of my salvation,
46:49
that God has sent salvation for his people.
46:54
Do you rejoice in that today?
46:57
In the midst of your those,
46:58
in the midst of the those
46:59
that are so often woes,
47:02
can you rejoice in the Lord?
47:06
That the Lord is not idle.
47:08
That the Lord is working.
47:09
That the Lord is able to save.
47:12
That the Lord, in the midst of wrath,
47:14
is able to remember mercy.
47:19
There is rejoicing in the God of salvation.
47:23
In the midst of all are those.
47:26
Think of Joni Erikson Tadda.
47:30
Maybe you've heard of her writings.
47:33
A Christian woman.
47:35
She was a great swimmer,
47:36
but in a diving accident at the age of 17,
47:38
she was paralyzed.
47:39
And she, for a time, struggled with her faith.
47:46
But as she went on,
47:47
her testimony became more and more powerful
47:50
to the wonder of the salvation of God.
47:54
That she could rejoice in that.
47:55
And she said this,
47:56
when we learn to lean back to God's sovereignty,
48:01
fixing and settling our thoughts on that unshakable,
48:06
unmovable reality,
48:07
we can experience great inner peace.
48:11
Our troubles may not change.
48:13
Our pain may not diminish.
48:15
Our loss may not be restored.
48:17
Our problems may not fade with the new dawn.
48:20
But the power of those things to harm us is broken.
48:24
As we rest in the fact that God is in control.
48:28
Yet, I will rejoice in the Lord.
48:33
I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
48:36
In the midst of our own circumstances,
48:39
the righteous shall live by faith.
48:42
And what faith does for us
48:47
is give us that rejoicing in the Lord.
48:50
Another one, John,
48:52
this man called John of the Cross,
48:55
I was reading a comment that he made.
48:57
He said,
48:58
And when you think of Habakkuk,
49:18
how he thought God was forgetting him.
49:21
And yet here we see his rejoicing in the Lord.
49:25
Yet, I will rejoice in the Lord.
49:27
I take joy in the God of my salvation.
49:32
Despite the those,
49:33
he is still rejoicing.
49:36
The final thing we take from this
49:38
is the last verse there.
49:41
God the Lord is my strength.
49:45
The source of this rejoicing
49:48
is God the Lord.
49:51
What a difference God makes
49:53
in the lives of his people.
49:55
What a difference God makes
49:57
in the life of Habakkuk
49:58
or Job
50:00
or Paul
50:01
or Joni, Erickson, Tadda
50:03
or all of us as Christians.
50:06
What a difference
50:06
having the Lord does for us
50:08
in the midst of all our those.
50:12
As we think of the question to Habakkuk,
50:15
how are you?
50:16
Well, he's saying,
50:17
God the Lord is my strength.
50:21
A minister called George Campbell Morgan,
50:24
he said this about looking at Habakkuk's life
50:28
and circumstances.
50:30
He says he was perplexed,
50:33
as you see in Habakkuk 1, verse 3.
50:35
But when he waited and listened to God,
50:40
he sang one of the greatest praise songs
50:42
in the Bible.
50:44
And that's these verses here.
50:47
From perplexity to praise.
50:50
And the praise that you see
50:51
in verse 17 to 19
50:53
is just that.
50:55
Though,
50:56
though all of these things are going on,
50:58
yet,
50:59
I will rejoice
51:00
in the Lord.
51:02
Lord in Habakkuk
51:04
is used 10 times.
51:07
God is used
51:08
five times.
51:09
It's a short book.
51:10
And yet,
51:11
God the Lord
51:12
is to the fore
51:13
all the time.
51:14
And as we conclude
51:15
in this book,
51:16
what we see is
51:17
it closes with
51:18
God the Lord.
51:20
He is my strength.
51:21
He makes my feet
51:23
like the deer's.
51:24
He makes me tread
51:25
on my high places.
51:27
He lifts us up.
51:30
There is hope.
51:31
There is rejoicing
51:32
in the Lord.
51:34
Think of Isaiah,
51:36
how he wrote
51:36
to the people of God
51:38
in their own devastation.
51:41
He reminded them
51:42
in Isaiah 40
51:43
as God was speaking
51:44
words of comfort to them.
51:46
He says
51:47
later in that chapter,
51:48
verse 28,
51:49
the Lord is the everlasting God,
51:51
the creator of the ends
51:53
of the earth.
51:54
He does not faint
51:55
or grow weary.
51:57
His understanding
51:58
is unsearchable.
52:00
He gives power
52:00
to the faint
52:01
and to him
52:02
who has no might
52:04
he increases strength.
52:06
Even youths
52:06
shall faint
52:07
and be weary
52:08
and young men
52:09
shall fall exhausted.
52:11
But they
52:12
who wait
52:12
for the Lord
52:13
shall renew
52:14
their strength.
52:15
They shall mount up
52:16
with wings
52:17
like eagles.
52:17
They shall run
52:18
and not be weary.
52:20
They shall walk
52:20
and not faint.
52:22
So similar
52:24
to Habakkuk here.
52:27
He makes me
52:28
tread
52:28
on the high places.
52:30
He lifts
52:31
his people up.
52:33
God the Lord
52:34
as our strength
52:35
lifts us up.
52:37
As you come
52:37
into the New Testament,
52:39
you see God the Lord
52:41
in the person
52:42
of Jesus Christ
52:43
is still
52:44
the source
52:44
of strength
52:45
for his people.
52:46
And a hope
52:47
that lifts us up.
52:48
As he writes
52:49
in John
52:50
chapter 14
52:52
through to 17,
52:54
you see there
52:55
how he's speaking
52:56
to the disciples
52:57
about all that's
52:58
to come.
52:59
How he's showing them
53:00
and how in chapter 17
53:01
he prays for them.
53:03
But at the end
53:04
of chapter 16
53:06
at verse 33
53:07
he says this,
53:08
I have said
53:08
these things to you
53:10
that in me
53:11
you may have peace.
53:13
In the world
53:14
you will have
53:14
tribulation
53:15
but take heart
53:17
I have overcome
53:19
the world.
53:21
There is strength
53:22
for God's people
53:23
in that.
53:24
You will have
53:25
tribulation.
53:26
You will have
53:27
your those
53:28
but yet
53:29
you can rejoice
53:30
in the Lord
53:31
because God
53:32
the Lord
53:33
is my strength.
53:35
The one
53:35
who has overcome
53:37
the world.
53:40
Do you have
53:40
that source
53:42
of strength
53:42
on God
53:44
the Lord
53:44
in all of your
53:46
those today?
53:47
another man
53:49
whose name
53:50
was Horatio
53:51
Spafford.
53:53
He knew
53:53
something
53:54
of the difficulties
53:55
and challenges
53:56
of the those
53:57
of life.
53:59
He was a
54:00
successful attorney
54:01
in America
54:02
and a real
54:03
estate investor.
54:05
But in the
54:06
Great Fire
54:06
in Chicago
54:07
in 1871
54:08
he lost
54:10
almost everything.
54:12
At the same
54:13
time
54:14
his four
54:15
year old
54:15
son passed
54:16
away.
54:18
He was in
54:18
the midst
54:18
of this
54:19
devastating
54:20
time
54:20
and he
54:21
thought it
54:21
would be
54:21
good for
54:22
the rest
54:23
of his
54:23
family,
54:23
his wife
54:24
and daughters
54:24
to go to
54:25
England
54:25
for a holiday
54:27
and that he
54:27
would join
54:28
them soon
54:28
after.
54:30
And so
54:30
he sent them
54:32
over to
54:32
England.
54:32
They boarded
54:33
a ship
54:34
to make
54:34
their way
54:35
to England
54:35
and the
54:36
ship was
54:37
involved
54:37
in a
54:38
collision
54:39
at sea
54:39
and sank.
54:41
200 people
54:42
were drowned
54:43
including his
54:44
four daughters.
54:46
His wife
54:47
survived
54:48
and she
54:49
made it
54:49
back,
54:50
she made it
54:50
to England
54:51
and she
54:51
sent a
54:52
telegram
54:52
and it
54:54
said,
54:54
saved
54:55
alone,
54:56
what shall
54:56
I do?
54:58
Horatio
54:59
Spafford
55:00
immediately
55:01
set sail
55:01
for England
55:02
and the
55:04
captain of
55:04
the ship
55:05
he was on
55:05
knew what
55:06
had happened
55:06
and as
55:07
they were
55:08
making their
55:08
way across
55:09
the Atlantic
55:09
he called
55:10
Horatio up
55:11
to the bridge
55:12
one day
55:12
and said
55:12
this is the
55:13
spot
55:13
where the
55:14
ship sank.
55:15
He wanted
55:15
him to know
55:16
that they
55:16
were passing
55:17
and it was
55:19
at that
55:19
time
55:20
that words
55:21
came to
55:22
him,
55:22
words that
55:23
became
55:23
a well-known
55:24
hymn.
55:26
In the midst
55:26
of all his
55:27
those he'd
55:28
lost his
55:28
fortune,
55:30
he'd lost
55:30
his son,
55:31
at four
55:32
years old
55:33
he'd lost
55:33
his four
55:33
daughters
55:34
in a
55:34
tragedy
55:35
and yet
55:36
he was
55:36
able to
55:37
say,
55:37
when peace
55:37
like a
55:38
river
55:38
attendeth
55:39
my way,
55:40
when sorrows
55:40
like sea
55:41
billows
55:41
roll,
55:42
whatever my
55:43
lot,
55:43
thou hast
55:44
taught me
55:44
to know,
55:45
it is
55:46
well,
55:46
it is
55:47
well with
55:48
my soul.
55:50
It's
55:51
hard sometimes
55:51
to think
55:52
how we can
55:52
see good
55:53
in the midst
55:54
of all
55:55
the those.
55:56
It's
55:57
difficult
55:57
and we
55:59
see that
55:59
with Habakkuk,
56:00
it sounds
56:01
maybe so
56:01
innocent,
56:02
though the
56:02
fig tree
56:03
shall not
56:03
blossom,
56:04
nor fruit
56:05
beyond the
56:05
vines,
56:06
the produce
56:06
of the
56:07
olive fail,
56:08
and the
56:08
fields yield
56:09
no food,
56:09
the flock
56:10
be cut off
56:11
from the
56:11
fold,
56:12
and there
56:12
be no
56:13
herd in
56:13
the stalls.
56:14
It sounds
56:15
in some
56:15
ways not
56:16
that serious,
56:18
yet it
56:19
was utter
56:19
devastation
56:21
for the
56:21
people.
56:23
It was
56:23
their lives
56:24
and their
56:24
suffering
56:25
that we
56:26
are seeing
56:26
here.
56:27
all this
56:28
was happening.
56:29
That was
56:29
there,
56:30
those we
56:31
have ours.
56:34
And yet
56:34
Habakkuk
56:35
could say,
56:36
yet I
56:37
will rejoice
56:38
in the
56:38
Lord.
56:39
I will
56:40
take joy
56:40
in the
56:41
God of
56:42
my salvation.
56:44
He had
56:45
hope because
56:47
he could
56:47
rejoice in
56:48
the Lord
56:48
who has
56:48
sent out
56:49
salvation
56:51
for his
56:52
people.
56:52
God,
56:53
and in
56:53
the midst
56:54
of that
56:54
he could
56:55
say,
56:56
God the
56:56
Lord is
56:58
my
56:58
strength.
57:00
Can you?
57:02
Can you
57:03
say these
57:04
things today?
57:06
We all
57:06
have our
57:07
those,
57:08
but in
57:10
Christ we
57:10
can come
57:11
and rejoice
57:13
in the
57:14
Lord.
57:14
I will
57:15
take joy
57:15
in the
57:16
God of
57:16
my salvation
57:17
because God
57:20
the Lord
57:21
is my
57:22
strength.
57:25
Habakkuk
57:26
came from
57:27
perplexity
57:28
at the
57:29
beginning of
57:30
chapter 1.
57:31
Why,
57:32
Lord,
57:32
where are
57:33
you?
57:34
He came
57:35
from that
57:35
to this
57:36
great song,
57:38
the song
57:39
of praise.
57:41
Though
57:41
all these
57:43
things are
57:43
going on,
57:44
yet I
57:46
will rejoice
57:47
because God
57:48
the Lord
57:49
is my
57:50
strength.
57:51
there is a
57:52
nugget that
57:53
concludes for
57:54
us this
57:54
study in
57:56
Habakkuk
57:56
where we
57:56
see nuggets
57:57
in the
57:57
midst of
57:58
so many
57:59
challenges.
58:01
May we
58:01
come to
58:02
rejoice in
58:04
the Lord
58:04
and know
58:05
God the
58:06
Lord as
58:07
our strength.
58:08
Let us
58:09
pray.
58:11
Lord,
58:12
our gracious
58:12
God,
58:13
we thank
58:13
you for
58:14
all the
58:15
words of
58:16
wisdom that
58:17
you speak
58:17
to us.
58:18
In the
58:19
midst of the
58:19
challenges
58:20
to Habakkuk
58:21
when he
58:21
sees so
58:22
much
58:22
devastation
58:23
around him,
58:24
yet he
58:25
was given
58:25
so much
58:27
insight into
58:27
the glory
58:28
of your
58:29
name.
58:30
How you
58:30
would remember
58:31
mercy in the
58:32
midst of
58:33
wrath.
58:34
How the
58:34
righteous are
58:35
to live by
58:36
faith.
58:37
How you are
58:37
able to
58:37
revive your
58:38
work in
58:39
the midst
58:40
of the
58:40
days.
58:40
And how
58:41
yet in
58:42
the midst
58:42
of all
58:43
our
58:43
those,
58:43
we can
58:43
rejoice in
58:44
the Lord,
58:45
the God
58:46
of our
58:47
strength.
58:48
And so
58:48
help us,
58:49
Lord,
58:49
to take
58:50
your word
58:50
with us,
58:51
to remember
58:52
it,
58:52
to apply
58:53
it to
58:53
ourselves
58:54
on a
58:54
daily basis.
58:56
Help us
58:56
to be
58:56
prayerful,
58:58
to be
58:58
patient,
58:59
and above
58:59
all to
59:00
praise your
59:01
great and
59:02
your glorious
59:02
name as
59:03
we ask it
59:04
all with
59:04
forgiveness of
59:05
our sins.
59:06
In Jesus'
59:06
name,
59:07
Amen.
59:11
We're going
59:11
to conclude
59:12
by singing
59:13
to God's
59:14
praise in
59:14
Psalm 18.
59:16
This is in
59:17
the Sing
59:17
Psalms version
59:18
on page
59:19
21.
59:21
We'll sing
59:22
from verse
59:22
27 to
59:24
verse 30.
59:26
You save
59:27
the humble
59:28
and the
59:29
meek,
59:29
but bring
59:29
the proud
59:30
down from
59:31
their height.
59:31
You,
59:31
Lord,
59:32
will keep
59:33
my lamp
59:33
aflame.
59:34
God turns
59:35
my darkness
59:36
into light.
59:38
We'll sing
59:38
from verse
59:38
27 to
59:39
30.
59:40
These three
59:40
stanzas
59:41
to God's
59:42
praise.
59:43
to save
59:50
the humble
59:52
and the
59:55
meek,
59:57
that bring
59:59
the pride
1:00:02
and from
1:00:04
their height.
1:00:07
Your heart
1:00:09
will keep
1:00:11
my lamp
1:00:14
aflame.
1:00:16
God turns
1:00:18
my darkness
1:00:21
into light.
1:00:26
With
1:00:28
help
1:00:29
from
1:00:30
God's
1:00:35
love.
1:00:36
God is
1:00:38
to
1:00:39
you
1:00:39
and
1:00:41
write
1:00:42
them
1:00:43
on.
1:00:44
And
1:00:46
with
1:00:47
the
1:00:48
end
1:00:49
my
1:00:50
God
1:00:51
will
1:00:52
give.
1:00:53
I
1:00:55
can
1:00:56
lead
1:00:58
over
1:00:59
any
1:01:00
wall.
1:01:02
For
1:01:04
perfect
1:01:06
is
1:01:07
the
1:01:08
way
1:01:10
of
1:01:12
God,
1:01:14
God.
1:01:14
No
1:01:15
father is
1:01:17
found
1:01:18
within
1:01:20
his
1:01:22
world.
1:01:23
To
1:01:24
all
1:01:25
who
1:01:26
put
1:01:27
their
1:01:28
trust
1:01:30
in
1:01:31
him,
1:01:32
a
1:01:33
shield
1:01:35
and
1:01:36
refuge
1:01:37
is
1:01:38
the
1:01:40
Lord.
1:01:43
After the
1:01:44
benediction, I'll go to the main door.
1:01:46
We'll close with the benediction.
1:01:48
Now may grace,
1:01:49
mercy and peace
1:01:50
from God,
1:01:51
Father,
1:01:52
Son and Holy Spirit
1:01:53
rest upon
1:01:54
and abide
1:01:55
with you all now
1:01:56
and forevermore.
1:01:58
Amen.
1:02:05
Amen.