Determination, Isolation, and Expectation

December 10

I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved. 

Habakkuk 2:1 

“I need an answer,” said Habakkuk, “so I’m going to go up into my tower and seek My Father.”

Please note three key components of this verse. The first is determination. When he needed an answer, Habakkuk said, “I will stand upon my watch.” He didn’t say, “Maybe I should spend some time with the Lord next week - or whenever it’s convenient or if I can break away from work or if I can find some time.” No, he said, “I need an answer and I’m determined to get one. I will seek the Lord.”

The Lord promises that we shall find Him when we search for Him with all our heart (Jeremiah 29:13). But so often we lack determination. Oh, there’s an acknowledgement in our minds that we should seek the Lord. There’s an intention that we probably will seek the Lord sometime. But we don’t get answers to the questions with which we wrestle because we lack this key component of determination.

Second, notice Habakkuk’s isolation. He got away from his telephone, radio, and TV and went up into a tower. He got away from all the distractions that would otherwise bombard him. I believe we don’t hear the voice of God because there are so many other voices constantly ringing in our ears. If you really want to hear from the Lord, there is no alternative to a quiet time, a quiet place, and a quiet heart.

Finally, notice Habakkuk’s expectation. He said, “I will see what the Lord will say to me,” not “what He might say to me,” not “what I hope He will say to me,” not “what I wish he would say to me,” but “what He will say to me.”

Hebrews 11:6 declares that without faith, it is impossible to please God, for he that comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. There are many ways to please God, but none apart from faith. If you don’t believe God is going to speak to you and deal with you, you’re not going to hear anything from Him.

How do you know if God will speak to you or not? Here is a very simple test: when you seek the Lord, do you have a journal with you, a pencil and paper before you? You see, if I don’t really expect God to speak, I’ll just kind of show up, casually slumped in my chair, saying, “Wonder if there’s anything in the Word for me today . . . Probably not . . .”

We adopt a laid-back mentality in seeking God and then wonder why we never hear from Him. But those who expect to hear from God have pencil and paper in hand. They are on the edge of their chair or on their knees in a posture of expectancy rather than in a spirit of complacency and lethargy.

Habakkuk said, “I am going to seek God. I will get away and I will hear what He has to say to me.” That’s the kind of faith that honors God. That’s the kind of faith that clears the wax of the world out of the ears of the inner man.

This Daily Devotional is an excerpt from the book "Footsteps of the Flock" by Pastor Jon. "Footsteps of the Flock" is a collection of 365 short devotions from the Old Testament books of Joshua through Malachi. If you would like your own copy of "Footsteps of the Flock" you may click here to go to the SearchLight Store