The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights.

Habakkuk 3

The Sovereign Lord is my strength;

he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,

he enables me to tread on the heights. v19

In chapter 1-3, Habakkuk reflects on God's power, wisdom, justice and love.  He know of Judah's wickedness and the Lord tells him that He will use the Babylonians to punish Judah.  Although Habakkuk at first does not understand, the Lord helps him see the wisdom in God's plan.

In the same way, I am surrounded by wickedness - in my own nature/acts, and in the nature and behavior of others.  I sometimes cry out for justice...playing the role of judge.  This is not my role - it is God's alone!  So in the same way that Habakkuk praises God for allowing us to balance our desire for judgement with His power, wisdom, justice and love.  God is the one who allows us to stay on path..."on the heights"...despite the treacherous ground and circumstances around us.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You ARE the Way, the Truth, and the Life:

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6.

I would not be able to exist or survive in this world without You Jesus.  You protect, provide, and bless me beyond what I deserve.  I am not worthy of such love.  I worry and I don't give all of myself to You.  Thank You that You love me anyway but please forgive me Jesus!  Help me so that Your desires are my desires.  Transform my heart and my life Jesus.

“I am against you,” declares the Lord Almighty.

Nahum 3

“I am against you,” declares the Lord Almighty. v5

The Lord is certainly Almighty...He is worthy is our worship because of this.  He knows all about us, and nothing is hidden from Him.  And because we are fallen, we are deserving of death:

The wages of the righteous is life, but the earnings of the wicked are sin and death. Proverbs 10:16

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23

Yet God is full of love, compassion and mercy for us.  He died for us and gave us the GIFT of eternal life.  We did not deserve it yet He gave His life for us...freely..  Yes, God is all powerful so we should worship Him.  Yet we should worship Him because He is also full of love, compassion, and mercy for us.  What a great God we have!

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are indeed a great God!  I see Your greatness all around me every day.  That You love me is amazing.  You don't even need me...I am broken and I sin.  I am not worthy of such love.  I thank You that You love me anyway, but please forgive me for my sin...one of which is my worry.  I know I need to place all of my trust and faith in You.  Help me Lord.  Help me be effective and productive with my school work and help me not worry. 

The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him,

Nahum 1

The Lord is good,

a refuge in times of trouble. 

He cares for those who trust in him...v7

The Lord is indeed good...in fact He is great!  He is great in infinite ways and Nahum speaks only to a few of these ways, including:  

The Lord is slow to anger but great in power; the Lord will not leave the guilty unpunished. v3

Paul's letter to the Galatians I believe is one of the better defintions of God as a great God...

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control. Galatians 5:22

My Prayer: Lord, there is none like You.  You are the one and only true God.  You are my God...my savior.  You don't need me, yet You love me so much You died for me.  I am not worthy of such love.  I sin.  Thank You for Your love but please forgive me for my selfishness and my laziness.  I desire to be a light...to be a reflection of You to others...to draw others to You.  Help me be more like You.  Help me have Your desires.  Help me lead a bold and daring faith.

Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance?

Micah 7

Who is a God like you,

who pardons sin and forgives the transgression

of the remnant of his inheritance? v18

There is indeed no God like You.  You, Jesus Christ are the one and only true God.  You not only forgive sin and pardon the sinner, but You also make available no less an inheritance (eternity with Jesus Christ) for the transgressor.  Amazing! 

My Prayer: Lord, there is no doubt You are the one and only true God who is the creator of all and capable of all!  You don't need me but You not only love me, You also redeem my sin and use me for Your glory.  Thank You Jesus for such amazing love.  I am not deserving.  Please forgive me for my critical and harsh nature.  Help me be more encouraging in both my words and my deeds.  Transform my heart to see and love others as You do.

And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

Micah 6

And what does the Lord require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy

and to walk humbly with your God. v8

All believers at one time or another see our walk with God as a burden.  Here in Micah, God sees right through this:

“My people, what have I done to you?

How have I burdened you? Answer me.

I brought you up out of Egypt

and redeemed you from the land of slavery.

I sent Moses to lead you,

also Aaron and Miriam. v3-4

The Lord's examples of His blessings don't even begin to describe how He has blessed His people.  Yet we complain about the burden of our walk.  Indeed we may be persecuted or even die for our faith - there is no promise of a risk free life for sure.  However, God does it make it simple:

To act justly and to love mercy

and to walk humbly with your God. v8

My Prayer: Lord, I know You have blessed me...beyond what I deserve.  I am weak, lazy, selfish, and full of pride.  Yet You love me anyway.  Thank You Jesus.  But please forgive me.  Help me be more like You.  Help me see both the simplicity and joy of "walking humbly with You".

In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and peoples will stream to it.

Micah 4

In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and peoples will stream to it. v1

Through Micah, the Lord warns of the last days when all will be gone yet those who believe in Him will be saved forevermore.  This is stated again later:

All the nations may walk in the name of their gods,

but we will walk in the name of the Lord

our God for ever and ever. v5.

As I have posted previously here, I need to live with the end in mind.  While those around focus on their gods, there is the One and Only True God - Jesus Christ.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are amazing and You have blessed me beyond imagination.  I play and enjoy tennis.  I have health, You provide for me, You surround me with family and friends.  You are great and I am undeserving of such blessings!  I am lazy and selfish.  Thank You Jesus for Your love but please forgive me!  Help me be more like You Jesus.  Help me so that Your desires are my desires.  Help me live a bold and daring faith with the end in mind.

But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow."

Jonah 4

But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow." v10

Jonah is of course saved by the Lord and then goes on to warn Ninevah about God's anger towards them and about what will happen to them if they don't repent and turn to the Lord.  They do repent and God shows mercy on them and does not destroy the city.  Jonah then is angry with the Lord...his anger stems from his own belief that God's judgement lacks wisdom, and that his own judgement is more suitable. 

When we become more absorbed with our own thoughts vs those of God we of course can't see the greatness and wisdom of God.  This plays out with Jonah as his anger stews over the withering of the plant (that God provided!) that provided him shade:

Jonah had gone out and sat down at a place east of the city. There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city. Then the Lord God provided a leafy plant[a] and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the plant. 7 But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the plant so that it withered. 8 When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint. He wanted to die, and said, “It would be better for me to die than to live.”

But God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?”

“It is,” he said. “And I’m so angry I wish I were dead.” v5-9

I cannot claim of course that I don't do this.  The key here is to set your eyes upon Jesus...as the "race" is long and we will never perserver unless we keep our eye on the finish line:

And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, ² fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.  Hebrews 12: 2

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, everything You have done and everything You do is perfect and great.  I have seen Your greatness in my life and in the life of those close to me.  I am not worthy of such love and blessing.  I am weak and selfish.  I know You love me anyway but please forgive me Jesus!  Help me so that Your desires are my desires.  Help me so that I can fix my eyes on You always and never lose sight of You and how Your greatness is present in all things and all the time.