Though
the fig tree should not blossom. And there be no fruit on the vines, Though the yield of the olive should
fail, And the fields produce no food, Though the flock should be cut off from
the fold, And there be no cattle in the stalls, Yet I will exult in the Lord, I
will rejoice in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength. . .
Loss is uncomfortable, unsettling and a
challenge to work through in our lives. No matter what kind of loss we
encounter we each must work through it on our own. In this passage Habakkuk
speculates about the possibility of coming war for the nation of Israel with
the Chaldeans. The prophet talks of no food, no fruit of the vine, no oil, no
grain for bread, no meat because the cattle perish, and no flock for meat and coverings.
What in your life has been taken from
you? What loss have you incurred? Not many of us are in want of food and drink,
but we do have things we have lost or people we love and care about that have
been taken away. Habakkuk says that even though all the creature comforts and
every necessity of life are removed he will in exult in the Lord and rejoice in
the God of his salvation.
In Habakkuk’s life his worship of God
was not affected by his circumstances. Even though a loss may be deep and
painful we should be moved to our source of strength, God Himself. That happens
through worship. But worship is a choice that we have to make. Twice in the
verses Habakkuk says, “I will.” Habakkuk moves to the positive rather than the
negative. Worship is personal and Habakkuk took ownership to change his focus. Worship
is not just a feel good experience we enjoy together. It is a choice we make to
glory and triumph in the Mighty God of the Universe. Worship of God is the
answer to loss. It takes the focus off our troubles and puts our emphasis on
the One who knows and who cares about our situation. Really, God should always
be our strength in good times and in hard times and definitely in times of loss.
Will we as God’s people stand with
Christ when we go through loss? When jobs fail, the economy goes south,
sickness strikes, shortages occur, when storms threaten, or a loved one dies.
Will we continue to worship God? Worship is a choice. Rejoice! The answer is in
worshiping our amazing God who never fails to supply our needs and heal our
hurts.
____________________Today's personal note from Sandy
Greetings from warm and sunny
Tempe, Arizona,
I imagine many of you were
surprised when you opened your email today to find The Encourager had arrived.
Many of you have been checking on me and I thought perhaps I would give you a
family update. My pastor encouraged me to write an Encourager. He said he
believed it would help my grieving process. He knew that many of you were
concerned our family.
Knowing that Dennis is with
Jesus is has been a great comfort for our family. We continue to grieve in our
own way and in our own time. Several of us have had frequent dreams about
Dennis and fortunately we have shared them with each other. Even 4-yearold
Johnny dreamed about Tapaw and told Mandy that in his dream “Tapaw was fishing
and he caught 5 fish!” He knew his Tapaw. I suppose Sunday’s are the hardest
especially for Collin and I because everywhere we go at church someone asks
about Dennis and we all truly miss him.
During this past few weeks,
Jennifer’s father suddenly passed away and their family has suffered through a
second loss. Two grandsons have lost both of their grandfathers. Please keep
them in your prayers. I have attended multiple band and choir concerts and our
family has celebrated Johnny’s 4th birthday.
I have started back teaching
my young mom’s Bible study. Sometimes we cry and pray and sometimes we get into
the Word. But either way it is a sweet and precious time for all of us. I have
watched the little grandsons a couple of times just recently. They are such a
joy. 
I have been asked about what
I will do with Purpose Ministries. After some counsel I am going to continue
with Purpose Ministries until God tells me to close it. When Dennis started
that ministry we began it together and I know he would want me to continue
until God gives me another direction.
Thank you Encourager Family
for all your love, support and prayers. Your encouragement has meant so much to
me and to our family. I wish I had the time to tell you all the many God
moments that have come since Dennis’ passing. Maybe next time I will share a
few.
Blessings in the name of the
Lord Jesus Christ to all of you,
~ Sandy
