Life rarely unfolds as we plan. As Christians, we navigate challenges in marriage, family, work, and ministry—often wondering why God allows trials to come our way. But what if we could shift our perspective? What if, like Habakkuk, we could move from doubt to faith — choosing to trust God in hard times and rejoice even when the outcome isn’t what we hoped for?
Habakkuk’s Faith: Trusting God Even When Life is Hard
Back in November, I found myself deeply reflecting on the book of Habakkuk. I had never realized before just how much it reads like a personal faith journal. Habakkuk wrote down what the Lord spoke to him, alongside his own thoughts, fears, and doubts. As a Levitical priest, he knew God’s plan, yet still found himself wrestling with uncertainty.
And isn’t that just like us? We know God is sovereign, yet we still struggle when things don’t go our way. Habakkuk teaches us that it’s okay to have questions—but we can’t stay in a place of doubt.
By the end of his writings, Habakkuk makes a powerful declaration about choosing faith over fear:
“I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us. 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. The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights.”
— Habakkuk 3:16-19
Choosing Joy in Difficult Seasons
Doubt was turned to faith!
His trust in God was not based on what God would give him. Even if suffering and loss came, Habakkuk resolved to rejoice—not in the situation, but in the Savior who is sovereign and would be his strength.
— Woman’s Study Bible, pp. 1321
Verse 18 is key here…“YET, I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.”
It reminds me of Galatians 6:9, a verse God placed on my heart shortly after I studied Habakkuk:
“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”
It’s easy to grow weary in seasons of waiting. We wonder why God hasn’t answered our prayers. We ask why we’ve been obedient yet still see no breakthrough. But just as my minister friend recently reminded us, God never forgets His promises.
The answer may not come when or how we expect, but God is faithful. And that means we can keep pressing forward, knowing that He is working even when we can’t see it.
God’s Promises Never Fail
Throughout Scripture, God reassures His people with the same unwavering truth:
“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.”
— Deuteronomy 31:6
And we see this promise repeated in the New Testament:
“Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’”
— Hebrews 13:5
But don’t miss the next verse in Hebrews:
“So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?’”
— Hebrews 13:6
This is faith in action—believing that even when we don’t know the why, when, or how, God will keep His promises. Our job is simply to keep holding on.
Keep Trusting God
Maybe you’re facing a trial today that feels overwhelming. Maybe you’re waiting on an answer that hasn’t come. Maybe, like Habakkuk, you’ve wrestled with doubt.
Friend, you are not alone.
God is not asking you to have it all figured out—He’s asking you to trust Him. To keep doing what’s right, even when the road is long. To choose joy over discouragement. To believe that your faithfulness is not in vain.
“Yet, I will rejoice in the Lord.”
Let that be our anthem today. Remember, I’m always praying for you, even if I don’t know who you are.
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