"No Matter What"

Habakkuk 3:17-19

Though the fig, tree may not blossom,

Nor fruit be on the vines;

Though the labor of the olive may fail,

And the fields yield no food;

Though the flock be cut off from the fold,

And there be no herd in the stalls--

 Yet I will rejoice in the Lord,

I will joy in the God of my salvation.

 The Lord God is my strength;

He will make my feet like deer's feet,

And He will make me walk on my high hills. 

'Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.' Pretty powerful life changing words for any and every believer.  Why? Because its easy to praise Him and rejoice in Him when everything is easy or seemingly great. But when things seem tougher and times are hard praising Him and rejoicing in His presence is a choice that we make. When we choose to not look at  the circumstance and we choose to rejoice in His presence and to trust His word on and in and throughout the situation than that means we are truly walking in faith. Proclaiming and walking in such a way as to be praising and rejoicing in Him despite good or bad times means we as believers have come to the place that our eyes are on Him and not the storm raging all around.

Every time I read or think about these words it always brings to mind Acts 16:22-40 and especially verses 25 and 26 ..."But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone's chains were loosed." If anyone had good reason to not be rejoicing in Him, it was Paul and Silas. Beaten and thrown in jail with their feet in stocks. Sounds like a good reason to be complaining but not these guys. They understood the meaning of, 'Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.' Because they not only understood it and put it into practice in their 'circumstance' they saw and amazing result. They got to hear the jailer say, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved!" They got to lead, not only the jailer himself but his whole family to the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Praise Him! Praise Him in the morning! Praise Him in the evening! Praise Him all day long! Praise Him in good times and hard times! Praise Him with a heart that cries out: "Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. Why? Because ...The Lord God is my strength; and He will makes my feet like deer's feet, And He will make me walk on my high hills." Praise Him ...no matter what and you'll get to see ... what or rather who matters most to Him. YOU!