Don’t forget to Pray

“Don’t forget to Pray”

Call to worship (based on Psalm 147 and John 1)

Praise the Lord, O people! For God strengthens the weak and blesses the children. God grants peace and gives abundance for all. God has created all things through the Word, and sustains the goodness of creation.

Prayer : O God, you create and sustain all things by your Word. Your love is manifest throughout your good creation. Indeed, your Word became flesh and dwelt among us, so that we might see, hear and know you in ways never before possible. But we do not always trust in that revelation and in your sustaining power. We sometimes doubt that your abundant love will overcome hatred in our world. Forgive our disbelief. Have mercy upon us for our failure to abide in Christ and to walk in his light. Amen.

Prayer:Lord, You make all things new You bring hope alive in our hearts And cause our Spirits to be born again Thank you for this new year For all the potential it holds. Come and kindle in us A mighty flame So that in our time, many will see the wonders of God And live forever to praise Your glorious name.

- Author Unknown

Habakkuk 3:1-3

1 A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet. On shigionoth.

2 Lord, I have heard of your fame;

I stand in awe of your deeds, O Lord.

Renew them in our day,

in our time make them known;

in wrath remember mercy.

3 God came from Teman,

the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah

His glory covered the heavens

and his praise filled the earth.

Introduction:

❖ Far-Sightedness is an eye condition that limits a person’s ability to see what is up close or near.

❖ Far-Sightedness is caused when light doesn’t shine directly on the retina.

❖ Many people have spiritual “far-sightedness” in that they can look to the future but can’t see what’s happening now.

❖ Spiritual far-sightedness occurs when sole focus on the future causes people to not prepare in the now.

❖ Many people will be significantly disappointed in the future when it becomes clear that they didn’t properly manage their time in the present.

Have you ever been falsely accused or so badly hurt that you wanted revenge? The proper response to slander is prayer, not revenge, because God says, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay.” Instead of striking back, ask God to take your case, bring justice, and restore your reputation.

1. Prayer neutralizes doubt. 1 A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet. On shigionoth. Shiggaion may be a term derived from the verb “to err” or “to wander,” it might also mean “wild” or “ecstatic.” It is a poem written with intense feeling, a lament to stir emotions.

Habakkuk praised God for answering his questions. Evil will not triumph forever; God is in control, and he can be completely trusted to vindicate those who are faithful to him. We must patiently wait for him to act.

God strides forth on the earth as a warrior against crime, visible in the storm of his creation: sun, lightning, flood, plague, and earthquake. When he appears, people and the earth tremble at his power.1. Prayer neutralizes doubt.

2. Prayer focuses our mind. 2 Lord, I have heard of your fame;I stand in awe of your deeds, O Lord.Renew them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy.

The first phrase addresses God as “Lord” and witnesses to the telling and retelling of his “fame” in the community. “Fame” (šemaʿ) means reputation or what the prophet has heard people say about God. That fame alludes to God’s acts of deliverance of Israel from Egypt, their entrance to Canaan, and the later assaults of the Philistines.

Habakuk knew that God was going to discipline the people of Judah and that it wasn’t going to be a pleasant experience. But Habakkuk accepted God’s will, asking for help and mercy Habakkuk did not ask to escape the discipline, but he accepted the truth that Judah needed to learn a lesson. God still disciplines in love to bring his children back to him. Accept God’s discipline gladly, and ask him to help you change.

God “searches minds and hearts.” Nothing is hidden from God-this can be either terrifying or comforting. Our thoughts are an open book to him. Because God knows even our motives, we have no place to hide, no way to pretend we can get away with sin. But that very knowledge also gives us great comfort. We don’t have to impress God or put up a false front. Instead, we can trust God to help us work through our weaknesses in order to serve him as he has planned. When we truly follow God he rewards our effort. 1. Prayer neutralizes doubt. 2. Prayer focuses our mind.

3. Prayer reinforces our faith. 3 God came from Teman,

the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah His glory covered the heavens and his praise filled the earth.

Teman is in southern Palestine and the Paran mountains lie further south, on the eastern edge of the Sinai Peninsula. God’s formation of Israel began in this region. It is the place in which Israel found refuge from Egypt after deliverance from the Egyptian army at the sea. It is the place of Mount Sinai, where the order of the community was established under God’s instructions. It is the place that God began to act in mighty ways to lead, protect, judge, and shape his people.

In Israel’s memory God went forth before his people as a warrior against their oppressors, using the forces of nature as his armies. In Exodus 14–15 he used cloud, fire, darkness, and the sea to deliver them. He used an earthquake at Jericho under Joshua. In Judges 5 God used torrential rains. In 1 Samuel 7 he used a thunderstorm to rout the enemy. David consolidated his power over the Philistines in 2 Samuel 5 with Yahweh’s direction and a wind in the balsam trees. In 2 Kings 18–19 a plague defeated the Assyrian army that surely would have taken Jerusalem.

Concerning those days, Habakkuk sings, “His glory covered the heavens and his praise filled the earth” (Hab. 3:3b). This phrase looks back to the time that Yahweh said would come again (“the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord,” 2:14). The sound and sight of Yahweh’s splendor were audible and visible to all. In the verses that follow Habakkuk vividly describes the visual and auditory experiences of Israel’s memory.

In conclusion: 1. Prayer neutralizes doubt. 2. Prayer focuses our mind.3. Prayer reinforces our faith.

He knows it will be a horrible wait and goes on to describe the experience of oppression and poverty that will settle on the conquered. These are the conditions the prophet expects and anticipates overcoming in patience (3:16b, nuaḥ, “rest”). He will not be a victim. He will be a survivor. He lists all the sources of food and agricultural commerce of the ancient world: fig trees, grape vines, olive trees, field produce, sheep, and cattle. Under these terrible conditions, Habakkuk resolves to be joyful, not superficially with eyes closed to the struggle for justice or deliverance but looking truth in the face.

Believing in a Warrior-Creator has two possible outcomes. God can defeat your enemies, or he can defeat you. If we believe that God will only defeat our enemies, we may not ready be for a Messiah like Jesus. If faith is only grounded in Yahweh’s defeating enemies in the way that Habakkuk describes in 3:3–15 (e.g., flashing fingertips), it will not be strong or based in reality. Habakkuk’s song continues to accept Yahweh’s judgment and his march against his own people, for their sake. Habakkuk’s faith is made strong by remembering the power of God’s deliverance.

The challenge of Habakkuk 3 is whether one matures in faith from. Both perspectives are necessary to a full faith. Hope is surely generated by memories of deliverance (3:3–15) as well as by trust in Yahweh, regardless of immediate circumstances (3:16–19).

Its application is found in growing in the grace and the knowledge of God (1:13b and 3:16b). This chapter demonstrates the necessary process of struggling with our previously held conceptions of God as well as growing into God’s revelation of his way in the world. They are the necessary maturing of a lasting faith, free of illusions.

Charge and benediction The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Go from here as a witness to the light. Walk in that light, as God’s own children. Lift up the brokenhearted, stand with the oppressed, And let all that you do – all of it – be out of love. Amen.