Joy in God Habakkuk 3:17-18

The timeliness of God is amazing! Let me give you some insider blogging information. I contacted the recent guest bloggers a few months ago, and God in His infinite wisdom is lining these posts up perfectly. I don’t know about you, but they are meeting some of my exact needs spot on. This week is no exception. Our world is in chaos and perhaps a modern day version of the chosen scriptures might read . . .

Though there is no toilet paper at the store,
nor milk on the shelf,
the schools are all closed, and
gathering together is forbidden,
important events are being cancelled or postponed,
and we don’t know when life will return to normal,
YET I WILL REJOICE IN THE LORD;
I WILL TAKE JOY IN THE GOD OF MY SALVATION!

God knew that we would need to be reminded that we have choices in the unknown. We can choose to have fear, get angry, become discouraged, or we can choose JOY in our God!

God knew we would need to hear the wise words from our guest blogger Amy Turner this week. Amy is the wife to our Minister of Music at our home church, Altamaha Baptist, in Jesup. I have recently gotten to know her through a ladies Bible study where she facilitates and leads the discussion. She has a tender heart for Jesus and loves His Word.

Read and listen to her heart . . .

Though the fig tree should not blossom,
    nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
    and the fields yield no food,
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 take joy in the God of my salvation.

                                  Habakkuk 3:17-18

          God has truly blessed my life.  It’s not a question I ask myself, but rather, it is a statement of fact.  He is my hope and my stay.  I grew up in a Christian home with loving parents.  Their faith was evident within our home as they lived a godly example.  I had the privilege to attend a Christian middle and high school where I learned more about God and His love for me.  I married my first love and have been married for 26 years with three wonderful children. 

My husband and I began our marriage serving as missionaries in Puerto Rico, and our two sons were born there.  After seven years in Puerto Rico, God called us to serve in Lakeland, Fl., where my husband was a youth pastor and I taught in public school.  God continued to work in and through our lives while growing us in our faith.

Our next move was the least likely of all or so it seemed.  Jesup, Ga., was nowhere on our life map, as is often the case when God leads, but there is no doubt that His hand was in our move.  That’s another story.

Within the first year of being in Jesup, our eldest son was diagnosed with a coarctation of the aorta.  He underwent heart surgery in Atlanta at Emery. That is also a different story of God’s greatness. The next year I had my first miscarriage.  I remember, distinctly, a friend whom I worked with telling me it was okay to be angry with God, but I also remember thinking, ‘how could I be angry with God?’

 I had another miscarriage within the next two years.  This one struck me to the core.  I was still not angry with God, but there was a hollowness inside where my emotions should have been.  I simply didn’t “feel.”  I did not blame God, yet I didn’t feel like praising Him either.  That night, my husband called me and played a song entitled, “I Will Sing”, and before the music began Habakkuk 3:17-18 was quoted.  The Word alive entered…filled my heart…and my sorrow and pain were turned to praise.

I do not have fig trees, olive trees or flocks to be burdened with, but I do know pain, suffering and heartache.  In those times of sorrow and pain that still come my way, what a great scripture to cling to.  “…yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.”

Amy Turner

If you’d like to enjoy a version of the song, I Will Sing, you can listen here.