Author Archives: Pastor Tommy

My heart is not proud, Lord, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. But I have calmed and quieted myself, I am like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child I am content.  (Psalm 131:1-2)

The difference between “weaned” and “whining” is like the difference between “faithful” and “fretting” . . . which is as far apart as the east is from the west! If we were to take an inventory of our lives, we would most likely confess that we often behave less like a “weaned child that is content” and far more like a “whining child that is cranky” because things in life did not go as we had planned.

I can speak from personal experience regarding this truth, which rears its ugly head all too often in my own life. The life that Kim and I live today as church planters is most definitely not the life we had planned when we first married. Twenty-four years ago, we were operating our wellness center and moving in the direction that we had carefully mapped out together. Then Jesus showed up . . . and the rest, as they say, is history—or, l should say, HIS-story. Yet along the way, as God was orchestrating His perfect plan for our imperfect lives, I acted much more like a cranky, whining child than the contented, weaned child.

• When God took away our wellness center . . . I whined.
• When God called me to be a PE teacher . . . I grumbled.
• When God called us to downsize our home . . . I complained.
• When God called me to devote my life to Him . . . I argued!

It has taken me years to grow up into the weaned child who is content with God’s construction plan for my life. And I must confess that there are still times when I move from “weaned” to whining when things don’t go the way I’d expected them to. Then my beloved Kim calmly reminds me that God is in control of all things . . . not me. One of the great truths we have learned over the years is to trust God, especially when we cannot trace or track Him. God has proven Himself abundantly faithful, even during those seasons when I have been busily engaged in fretting, fussing, or fuming.

One of the keys that Kim and I have discovered over the years that unlocks the door leading to the weaned contentment is shifting our focus away from ourselves and putting in on the Savior. It is exchanging self-absorption for Savior-astonishment. Self evaporates when the Savior is elevated in our eyes.

Jesus said, “When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all people to myself” (John 12:32), pointing to a bloody cross where He would die for our sins. Keeping this truth in view allows us to be like the weaned child who is content. Why? Because we can be completely confident that nothing will ever separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38-39). Nothing can snatch us out of His hand (John 10:28). Therefore, while we will frequently be confronted with “circumstances beyond our control,” we can be content; we rest in the knowledge that every one of those circumstances is entirely under the sovereign direction of our loving, heavenly Father.

This is the attitude of the weaned child with its mother. It is your experience with your Master today? I pray that will be so. May our lives echo the lovely words of Horatio Spafford’s great hymn, “It Is Well with My Soul” . . .

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts,” declares the Lord.  (Isaiah 55:8-9)

You may remember Trivial Pursuit, the board game that was hugely popular during the 1980s, which challenged players to answer various questions about culture, science, geography, and sports. I happened to come across the game the other day, and it got me thinking about all the “trivial” things—at least, “trivial” from my perspective—that God uses to pursue rebels on the run . . . and that includes you and me.

What seemingly trivial things has God been using to pursue you lately?

• Summer cold?
• Nagging injury?
• Sleepless night?
• Toothache?
• Unexpected expense?
• Unkind boss?
• Grumpy neighbor?
• Problems with your car?
• Traffic ticket?

Take a moment to review just the last week of your life and prayerfully consider all the things that you might regard as insignificant that God sent your way. Is it possible God was trying to get your undivided attention and unwavering affection? Remember, everything God delivers to us, He delivers for our perfection and for His praise. We are being conformed into the image of Christ (Romans 8:29), and our God can and will use anything and everything as a means to that end. More often than not, those things might seem trivial or insignificant from our perspective.

As a pastor, it is not uncommon to hear people talk about some major event in their lives—professional, medical, financial, relational—as a time when God intervened in their lives and did a mighty, magnificent, and miraculous work. To be sure, these are some of the ways God works in the lives of His people, but God also works in those small, seemingly trivial ways . . . and I’m sure you would agree that there are far more of those events in our lives. Remember, not a bird falls to the ground apart from His will (Matthew 10:29). As Paul wrote, “From him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen” (Romans 11:36).

My prayer is that today’s word of encouragement will remind you to pay close attention to all that God is doing in your life, both through significant events and those seemingly trivial ones. God is using every event in your life in the process of conforming you to the image of his Son; nothing is insignificant. If you will listen closely today, perhaps you will hear His still, small voice in something seemingly trivial . . . which will impact you in a significant way!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

Record my misery; list my tears on your scroll – are they not in your record? (Psalm 56:8)

How do you see God? Sadly, far too many of us see Him as some distant deity, a “blind watchmaker,” disengaged from His creation and uninterested in them individually. Yet this verse makes it crystal clear that nothing could be further from the truth. Several of the best Bible translations render the middle section of Psalm 56:8, “Put my tears in your bottle.” Now, how is that for cosmic compassion?!

How blessed we are to have a God who is not like some cosmic computer that cannot relate to us personally, emotionally, and spiritually. Sure, a cosmic computer could provide us with some incredible information, but it would be completely incapable of connecting with us at a heart level . . . which is the level where we need connection most!

The author of the letter to the Hebrews offers us this wonderful encouragement:

We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are — yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Hebrews 4:15-16)

David knew this truth. He knew it when he was facing the giant Goliath; he knew it when he was hounded by the ungodly king Saul. David also knew God’s cosmic compassion when he was confronted by the prophet Nathan. To be sure, God sent Nathan to rebuke David for his terrible sin with Bathsheba and against her husband. But that conviction did not come without God’s love; in fact, it was God’s compassion, mercy, and grace that would not leave David in his sin, but sent Nathan to prompt David’s repentance and to deliver him from himself.

There is a brief passage in Matthew’s gospel that we might read through quickly and miss its significance.

Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (Matthew 9:35-36)

Have you ever felt “harassed and helpless,” buffeted by circumstances beyond your control, with no shepherd to guide you? And did you perhaps believe that God took no notice . . . or that He was displeased with you and was standing aloof, allowing you to sink beneath the waves of adversity? Look at Matthew’s account again; he observed that Jesus had compassion on the people. The Greek word that the Holy Spirit inspired Matthew to use means far more than that Jesus simply “felt sorry” for them. It describes a deep, visceral feeling of pity and sorrow; quite literally, Jesus was so moved by the plight of humanity that He felt it in the pit of His stomach! An uninterested deity? A blind watchmaker? Hardly!

Think about all of the tears you have shed during your life. God has collected every one of them in His bottle. He is keeping a record of every tear in His scroll, which means your pain is NOT unnoticed and NOT without purpose. Every tear you shed is being used by God in the process of your sanctification—growing you up into Christ. Not a single tear falls to the ground, because your loving heavenly Father is standing by your side, collecting each and every one of them.

Here is what I believe will take place on that great and final day: Jesus will hand you the bottle He collected, filled with all of your tears, and you, like the sinful woman who anointed the feet of Jesus in Luke 7:38, will worship your loving Lord by pouring your bottle of tears out over His nail-scarred feet, knowing that these will be the last tears you will ever see.

Remember, we have been given the promise that Jesus will wipe away every tear, and we will live in a place where there will be no more sorrow, no more pain, and no more death. We will have finally entered into our eternal rest, where Jesus, who is seated on the throne, has made everything new . . . and that includes YOU!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone?” (Matthew 7:9)

Question: When is getting a stone better than getting bread? Answer: When it is our Savior who is giving us the stone! Why? Because it is our gracious and loving Savior who knows exactly what we need . . . and when we need it.

Looking back over my life, I cannot count the times when I was asking God for what I thought was tasty, nourishing “bread,” and instead He gave me what I thought was a “stone.” But each time I eventually realized that what I was asking for was really a lifeless, non-nourishing stone and what God gave me was really life-giving bread!

Every parent knows this truth as it relates to our children. Our kids ask for stuff that they believe is wonderful, delicious “bread” that they can’t live without, when in reality they were begging us for something with no more value than a rock. Even worse, our children often ask us for things that unwise or unhealthy, like asking for a candy bar 15 minutes before dinnertime! And when we said something like, “Let me give you something that is actually good for you,” their faces were downcast, as if we’d just handed them a dirty old stone. To be sure, parents know better than the child what the child needs, just as God knows better than us what His children need.

Often it comes down to our level of spiritual maturity. The less mature we are, the more often we ask for things that are truly not in our best interest. Oh, we think we need it and we plead our case before heaven’s throne. But, more often than not, we are asking for something we want, not something we need; and if we were to get that thing we were begging God for, we would remain in our spiritual infancy, sipping on milk rather than eating solid food.

God’s greatest goal for each one of us is to conform us to the image of Christ (Romans 8:29). The “stones” of life that God delivers both shape and sharpen us to grow and mature in our faith. These stones may not deliver us into our perception of “the good life,” but they will certainly pave the way that leads to living the godly life . . . and that is the only life worth living.

So when was the last time God gave you a stone rather than bread? Has enough time passed that you can see His reason for doing so? The only way to understand the stones of this life is to see life from God’s perspective and thus live in the light of eternity. The key that unlocks the door to understanding this truth is seeing our God as a loving Father who knows what is best for us and will never stop short of seeing to it that we get what we need . . . which is frequently  not what we want!

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.  (Ephesians 1:22-23)

We hear a lot of talk these days about self-fulfillment. “Be the person you want to be . . . Accomplish the goals you want to accomplish . . . Follow your heart . . . Live the life that you desire and self-fulfillment will follow.” Here’s the problem: at no time does the Bible even encourage, much less command, the saints of God to be “self-fulfilled.” Rather, it is Savior-filling that is our goal.

The unbelieving world tells us that self-fulfillment is the goal and purpose of this life. This was the goal and purpose for both the fallen angels and our first parents in the Garden of Eden. But the Word of God says that knowing our Savior is the goal and purpose of this life; each disciple of Christ should be the “full” expression of Jesus. This happens only to the extent that we are filled with our Savior. Savior-filling, not self-fulfillment, is the goal and purpose of this life—and the next one—for the committed Christian.

So . . . what have you been seeking lately: self-fulfillment or Savior-filling? The day you said, “I believe,” the Savior filled you with the presence of His Holy Spirit. As you live your life for the glory of God, that fullness will put the truths of the Gospel on display and point to the One who filled you: your Savior.

Paul expressed this truth this way:

It was Jesus who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.  (Ephesians 4:11-13)

Our confession should echo that of John the Baptist: “I must decrease and He must increase.” Seeking self-fulfillment sets the focus on the self and the things of this world. It puts self on the throne of life, seeking a coronation of the self. But a Savior-filling focus keeps our eyes fixed on Jesus and keeps our hearts beating for nothing smaller than Him. Savior-filling keeps Jesus on the throne of our lives and eagerly seeks the coronation of our Savior, “so that in everything he might have the supremacy” (Colossians 1:18).

When we remember that it pleased God to have His fullness dwell in His beloved and precious Son, we will seek our Savior, rather than self-fulfillment, because in doing so, we will not only get more and more of what we need most—our Savior—we will also receive the deepest level of self-fulfillment known to man.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

Yesterday at Cross Community Church, we opened services with our First Annual Patriotic Special to praise God and thank our armed forces for safeguarding the freedom we enjoy each day. Mrs. Sharon Griffin played a patriotic prelude; Mac McConnell performed Patrick Henry’s gripping “Give me liberty or give me death!” speech; and then our first-ever choir, which was trained by Meg Carter and Brock Boland, sang the anthems for the five branches of our military and closed with America The Beautiful. It was a stirring celebration, and I can’t wait to do it again next year!

Tomorrow is the Fourth of July—a day for food, fellowship, and fireworks. But for American Christians, it is a time for so much more. It is a day to reflect on the fact that we are a nation that was founded on, rooted in, and established by Christian principles.

Don’t take my word for it; listen to these voices from history:

It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor.  George Washington

The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were . . . the general principles of Christianity. John Adams

No nation has ever existed or been governed without religion. Nor can be. The Christian religion is the best religion that has been given to man and I, as Chief Magistrate of this nation, am bound to give it the sanction of my example.  Thomas Jefferson

Our laws and our institutions must necessarily be based upon and embody the teachings of the Redeemer of mankind. It is impossible that it should be otherwise. In this sense and to this extent, our civilizations and our institutions are emphatically Christian. Illinois Supreme Court

Regardless of what we hear our politicians saying today, supported by the liberal media and the revisionists of history, our great nation was founded on Christian principles and the freedom to worship the God who is—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of revelation—not the god of our own imagination.

In 1853, the Judiciary Committee of the US House of Representatives released the following statement:

Had the people, during the Revolution, had a suspicion of any attempt to war against Christianity, that Revolution would have been strangled in its cradle. At the time of the adoption of the Constitution and the amendments, the universal sentiment was that Christianity should be encouraged, not any one sect [denomination]. Any attempt to level and discard all religion would have been viewed with universal indignation. . . . In this age there can be no substitute for Christianity; that, in its general principles, is the great conservative element on which we must rely for the purity and permanence of free institutions.

It has been proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that, while not every one of our founding fathers was a confessing Christian, the vast majority of them not only pledged allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, but also to their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world. They echoed the inspired and infallible words of the apostle Paul:

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)

Our founders’ ultimate allegiance was to the Almighty. They were devoted to Him. They were dedicated to Him. They were dyed-in-the-wool for Him. Their entire existence was rooted in their right relationship with their Redeemer.

Patrick Henry himself, that thunderous orator of the American Revolution, included these words in his last will and testament:

This is all the inheritance I can give my dear family. The religion of Christ can give them one which will make them rich indeed.

That, beloved, is to be the confession of the lives of all those Christians who pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States and every other Christian around the world, regardless of what flag they salute.

Tomorrow, on the day that we in the United States of America commemorate the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain, let us meditate on our declaration of dependence upon our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and His sovereign rule in our lives. Jesus is to be our first priority in both life and death. He is our safety in the storm. He is our peace in times of trouble. He is our portion in times of need. He is to be our All in all.

There is no greater declaration for the Christian to make and honor than the one made to the King of kings and the Lord of lords. When we declare that we are His, we declare that we are no longer our own. We have been bought at a price no man can measure. The very Son of God was crucified and nailed to a dirty tree, hung between two thieves to pay the penalty for every one of our sins—past, present, and still to come. We are His, and no other’s, and He will tolerate no rival!

So as you prepare to enjoy your July 4^th celebrations tomorrow, please pause to remember and give thanks to the One who purchased your independence from the kingdom of the prince of this world. He has brought you out of darkness and into His marvelous light, to remain with Him forever and ever, world without end. By God’s grace, may we live lives that confess both our pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to our triune God in heaven: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

Jesus said, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.”  (Luke 9:23)

Is there anyone reading these words who does not like to wake to a day when the sky is blue, the clouds are fleecy, and the sun is shining brightly? In summertime, when we have planned a day outside with the family, this is certainly a welcome sight. Yet we all know that sometimes we awake to ominous, dark clouds and gusting storm winds.

One of the first lessons I learned from my seminary professors was the importance of preaching the “whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27 NKJV). We were instructed to preach not only the love, grace, mercy, and kindness of God, but also to preach His holiness, justice, and judgment too—what the Puritans called “the stormy north side of Christ.” It will serve us well on our way to the Celestial City to remember that God has two sides, and we are being conformed to the image of Christ by both of those sides, perhaps even more so from the stormy north side.

It has been said that it must be the business of the preacher to “comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.” The only way this will be accomplished is by preaching the whole counsel of God, which includes His stormy north side. John Henry Newman put it this way:

Those who make comfort the great subject of their preaching seem to mistake the end of their ministry. Holiness is the great end, comfort is a cordial, but no one drinks cordials from morning to night.

The problem for many in the church today is that they are looking for happiness, not holiness—the good life, not the godly life—and I can assure you these are as far apart as the east is from the west! God is in the business of conforming us to the image of His beloved Son, so we should expect to spend some time on the stormy north side of our Savior. Remember that our Lord experienced more than His share of trials and difficulties during His time on earth! Peter exhorts us to remember that “Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps” (1 Peter 2:21).

Christian, keep in mind that our Savior is not just there with us in the boat in the middle of the storm; He is the One who sent the storm. And if Jesus is the One who has ordained the storm, we can be fully confident that it is ultimately designed to wean us away from the things of this world and cause us to cling to Christ.

To be sure, the stormy north side of our Savior is not a place of comfort. The writer of Hebrews acknowledged that “No discipline seems pleasant at the time but painful,” but he went on to provide a promise that you and I can cling to in the most ferocious storms: “Later on however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it” (Hebrews 12:11). The harvest of righteousness and peace is promised to those who receive and rest in the stormy north side of the Savior.

May that be the confession of your life today . . . and every day on this side of the grave.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

The land you are crossing the Jordan to take possession of is a land of mountains and valleys that drinks rain from heaven.  (Deuteronomy 11:11)

Notice that the Promised Land God was giving to His people Israel was a land that was identified by both mountains and valleys. This provides the perfect picture of the life of the child of God today. We walk through this life knowing that valleys inevitably follow mountains. In other words, life will be a series of ups and downs.

If this message finds you on the mountaintop today, basking in the sun, know the valley is not far away. And if this finds you in the dim light of the valley, you can be sure that it won’t be long before you will begin to ascend the mountain again. May this truth encourage and empower you to keep pressing on.

There are times in life when we feel like we are riding the crest of the waves . . . and there are times when we feel overwhelmed by the waves that are crashing all around us. Take just a cursory glance through the pages of Scripture and you will see this truth in the lives in the saints of God. Let’s look at one example in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament.

Abraham had his moments on the heights of the mountain as he followed God faithfully, not knowing where God was leading him. The Lord God Almighty had appeared to him in the form of a smoking firepot and a blazing torch, covenanting with Abraham to give him and his descendants a vast inheritance of land (Genesis 15:12-20). Yet Abraham also trudged through the valley when he refused to trust in the promises of God. Fearing for his own life, Abraham instructed his wife to tell the people in Egypt that she was his sister instead of his wife (Genesis 12). And if that wasn’t bad enough, Abraham sank even lower when he told the same lie a second time to Abimelech, king of Gerar (Genesis 20).

Peter, “the Rock,” also had his moments on the mountaintop and in the valley. He left his nets to follow the Lord Jesus Christ; he walked and talked with Jesus Christ every day! When Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do you say I am?” Peter promptly replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” This earned a warm blessing from the King of kings: “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church” (Matthew 16:15-18). Peter must have thought that the glow from that mountaintop experience would last forever!

But in no time at all, Peter tumbled into the valley when he thought to rebuke Jesus for telling the disciples that He would soon suffer and die and then be resurrected, earning our Lord’s sharp rebuke: “Get behind me, Satan!” (Matthew 16:23). Peter followed that gaffe up with his three dreadful denials in the courtyard on the night Jesus was betrayed. But our Lord didn’t leave Peter floundering in the valley; Peter was restored, and God used his preaching at Pentecost to add 3000 to the family of faith. I think we would all agree that Peter’s life was a constant series of ups and downs.

Here is the key to making progress through both the ups and the downs of life: We must keep our eyes of faith firmly fixed on Jesus, knowing that both peaks and pits have been promised to the disciple of Christ. Looking back over my life, I can tell you this has been my pattern of progress, and I will also tell you that I learned much more in the valleys of life than I ever would have learned had I remained on a mountain.

So take a moment to prayerfully consider where this finds you and thank God for the promise of getting you to the other side of both the valley and the mountaintop, which He will do for two certain reasons: your good and His glory.

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.  (Hebrews 11:8-10)

May this passage serve as a source of great encouragement to you today, regardless of where this message finds you.

Abraham had no idea where he was going, but he knew Who was calling him, so he went by faith, “longing for a better country—a heavenly one” (Hebrews 11:16). Abraham was inspired by the invisible! Can the same be said about you?

As disciples of Christ, we are to set our hearts on things above, not things below (Colossians 3:2). We are not to long for the temporal realm of this world, because everything in this world is passing away. Everything in the visible world is in the process of decay . . . and that includes you and me.

That is why we are to be inspired by the invisible! To be sure, we must live in the now, but we hold loosely to everything we have been given. There should be no “white-knuckle” grip by the children of God on the things of this world. Think about it this way: if you live long enough, everything you have will be taken away from you. Whether it breaks down or is given to someone else, everything visible, since the fall in the Garden of Eden, is destined to deteriorate.

Christian, there is so much more to life than what you see! Abraham knew this truth by faith, so he went where God was calling him, longing for the invisible Celestial City that was his promised inheritance. And it is your promised inheritance also! How instructive it is to read from the inspired pen of the apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 13 that the three things that remain have nothing to do with the stuff of this physical world; these are:

FAITH . . . HOPE . . . LOVE!

Faith, hope, and love are the foundational pillars of the city whose architect and builder is God. If we are disciples of Christ, we must always keep the invisible in view; when we do, we will be good stewards of all that we have been given in the visible world.

1. S. Lewis beautifully summed up this kind of living in his book, The Joyful Christian –

“Aim at Heaven and you will get Earth thrown in: aim at Earth and you will get neither.”

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!

I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.  (Habakkuk 3:18)

The prophet Habakkuk had a “yet” mind-set in the midst of unimaginable lack and scarcity; he refused to respond to his circumstances rather than his God.

The question before the house is this: Do you and I possess the same mind-set, regardless of the cost or circumstances we are facing? Take a moment to marinate in these words before you consider your answer.

Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. (Habakkuk 3:17-18)

To fully grasp the Habakkuk “yet” mind-set, we must understand what this kind of calamity would mean to the people of Habakkuk’s time. Crop failure would be devastating to the people of Judah. Add the death of the animals to that, and you have the makings of a financial disaster of catastrophic proportions, leading ultimately to death through starvation.

But even in those most dire circumstances we read, “Yet I will rejoice in the Lord.” Those words might come easily to those of us today who live in the midst of so much abundance. But what about those times when the abundance is taken away? How will we respond when the business closes . . . when the biopsy comes back showing a malignancy . . . when the son or daughter leaves home, seeming to have utterly abandoned the Christian faith? How will we respond then? Without Habakkuk’s “yet” mind-set, we will never rise above the challenges of daily living and reach the place where we truly believe that Jesus plus nothing equals everything.

Make no mistake, our Master wants all His disciples to develop a “yet” mind-set on this side of the grave. How easy it is to praise our God when the sky is blue, the clouds are fleecy, and the sun is shining brightly! How much more difficult it is to rejoice when the storm winds are blowing and the waves of challenge are crashing over us. Praise flows from our lips when the pantry is full, but what about when the cupboard is bare? The promotion gives us reason to praise our God, but what about the pink slip? Habakkuk was able to say, “Yet I will rejoice in the Lord.” Can you and I do the same?

Habakkuk’s prophecy offers us one of those Gospel keys that unlocks the door leading to the “yet” mind-set: “The righteous person will live by faith” (Habakkuk 2:4). Faith, not sight, is the key to the “yet” mind-set. Faith fixes its focus on the Faithful One, not our ever-changing circumstances. Faith keeps us firmly standing on the Rock of our salvation, knowing that He who began the good work within us will complete it in His time and in His way. And often that way will include scarcity, lack, and emptiness. When we face those difficult—perhaps even devastating—circumstances, may we say with Habakkuk, “YET . . . !”

This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!