A pastor who, at his wife’s twenty-eighth operation, was still crying out to God, how much longer, opens this reflection on the book of Habakkuk. The prophet brought God exactly the same questions and received an answer he never expected: Israel would be judged by the hand of the even crueller Babylonians (Habakkuk 1-3). The sermon shows why Habakkuk nevertheless refused to give up the conversation with God, and what carried him from lament to a joyful song. Listen if you are carrying questions that go unanswered.
Discussion questions
For your small group or for personal reflection after the sermon.
- Habakkuk asks God, "How long, Lord?", and hears that God is raising up the ruthless Chaldeans. Why did this answer surprise and even offend him so much?
- God tells Habakkuk, "Write down the vision and make it plain on tablets" and "the righteous will live by faith" (Habakkuk 2:2-4). What did these words mean for a prophet awaiting the Babylonian invasion?
- Habakkuk does not give up on talking with God; he stands at his watchpost and waits for God's answer. What does your prayer look like when God answers differently than you expect, or seems silent?
- The sermon stressed that we are not saved by our faithfulness to God, but by God's faithfulness to us. How does this distinction change the way you see hard seasons?
- Habakkuk moves from lament to a joyful song by remembering what God did in the past (Habakkuk 3). What specific things God has done in your life can you recall today to strengthen your trust?
- Corrie ten Boom agreed to leave her question in her father's care, just like the heavy suitcase. What hard question or injustice do you want to entrust to God this week instead of taking matters into your own hands?
