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Not Afraid of Bad News

Face bad news with joy and strength with these 3 lessons from Habakkuk.

作者：

Under the fig tree

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“He is not afraid of bad news;
his heart is firm,
trusting in the LORD.”
(Psalm 112:7 ESV)

“Do you want the good news or the bad news first?”

Which we choose might say a thing or two about our personality. But the one who trusts in the Lord can remain confident, even when bad news comes knocking.

Imagine living in a world where the law is powerless, and violence is rampant. The prophet Habakkuk lived in Judah in such a time and saw the wicked gaining power with no consequences. In asking God why He allowed such violence to continue, God replied.

The good news? God will punish Judah for her wickedness. The bad news (to Habakkuk)? To do so, God will use the Babylonians, known for their fearsome and violent army.

Mortifying news indeed.

But we can learn our first lesson in facing bad news: even when you don’t understand God’s plan, trust Him humbly.

Habakkuk is appalled. But recognising God’s ultimate sovereignty, he doesn’t demand answers. Rather, he waits humbly to hear God, even anticipating that he will be “corrected” (Habakkuk 2:1).

The second lesson is this: hold on to who God is.

Despite the bad news, Habakkuk remembers that God is righteous. God reassures him that the wicked will not go unpunished forever. In time, Babylon too will be judged (Habakkuk 3:8).

When we face bad news today, we can cling to God’s unchanging nature. No matter what we feel, He is loving, compassionate, faithful, and just. He sees it all, the good and the bad. Our limited perspectives and our temporary bad news do not change our God, who cannot deny Himself.

The third lesson? Good news or bad news, rejoice in the Lord.

The Book of Habakkuk ends with a national invasion looming on the horizon. Yikes!

Yet Habakkuk powerfully declares, “Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines... yet I will rejoice in the LORD” (Habakkuk 3:17-19).

This is a joy rooted not in our circumstances but in the God of our salvation.

By meditating on God’s great power and past deliverance of His people, Habakkuk could rejoice (Habakkuk 3:9-15). True strength comes not from our own resolve, but from trusting God’s faithfulness.

Just as God was faithful before, He will remain faithful again. Even when bad news comes.

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Ezekiel Chapter 24 – God’s Message In The Mess

Ezekiel Chapter 24 – God’s Message In The Mess

In the same chapter that God delivers to Ezekiel shocking national news of the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem, God also delivers to Ezekiel shocking personal news. His wife will die that day. Our past devotionals have discussed much about why God’s punishment of the house of Israel is righteous, rather than unwarranted. God reiterates here that according to their filthy, lewd deeds that they will be judged. Why, then, did Ezekiel’s wife have to die? Why did she have to be punished? Such a statement reveals a very human assumption: death is punishment, and God has no right to take away human life. Does He have no right? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not (Rom 9:14). Above all, life is not in our hands. We neither know when we will die (Eccl 9:12), nor do we have power over our spirits in the day of death (Eccl 8:8). Life, though, is in God’s hands. Take a step back and realise who we are before the Lord. Merely the thing formed, speaking to Him who formed us. He who gives life has the authority to take it away (Rom 9:20-21). Is the Lord then cruel to Ezekiel, taking away his wife so suddenly, then demanding that he hem in his grief by an unwavering silence? Although everyone dies one day, a clear divine plan shrouds the death of Ezekiel’s wife: just as God will take away the delight of Ezekiel’s eyes, God will also take away the delight of the people, their temple in Jerusalem. I believe this, and full faith in God’s good sovereignty, would have fuelled Ezekiel’s surrender. We too can gain strength to face the difficulties that stomp into our lives with no warning. Others may see a mess, but we can see a message from God, even when we may not understand. The message could be as simple as realising the true sovereignty of our good God. Such surrender opens up all of us—even the mess, the loss, the pain—to be used for His glory. If we find ourselves struggling to surrender, we can make earnest, desperate prayers to learn obedience to God’s plan (Heb 5:7). It is when we surrender that we live out God’s message, even in the mess.

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