"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" (Habakkuk 3:17-19).
It's easier said than done right? But our praise and thanksgiving should never be dependent on our circumstances or our situation, which frequently change. Praise for God is based on who He is and what He has done for us, through Jesus Christ, and that is unchanging!!
When we take our eyes off the eternal truth I just mentioned, we are tossed around in a sea of emotions, challenges, and fear. It's what happened when Peter stepped out of the boat, and after fixing his eyes on Jesus he walked on water. But as he looked around him, taking his eyes of God, he began to sink.
As he did with Peter, Jesus will pull us up out of the storm when we fix our eyes on Him, and reach out for his help.
Our lives come and go, ever so briefly, but our future rests in our hands, and how we respond to Jesus' call to get out of the boat and trust him. and we can always praise Him, always give thanks, because He never ceases to watch over us and give us his strength.
We've had some storms recently, some real, some just dark clouds threatening on the horizon. I was thankful to realize that rather than panic and run for the hills, I grabbed my umbrella and pressed on, confident that God would be in the storm with us, if He did not completely remove the storm.
It is well known that a grateful heart can withstand much, because it is focused on what is good, and it is much easier to move on to what good may come from that standpoint!
Don't lose sight of who God is, or what He has done in your life and the lives of those you love. See His faithfulness and love and cling to it.
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