“Therefore I will look unto the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me.” Micah 7:7
The times of Micah were dark days, Israel was in a chaotic shamble, faced with serious famine coupled with the constant threat of invasion by the surrounding the nations; the Assyrian, the Babylonians and the Egyptians
Worst still, the people attitude was an archetype of godlessness, Verses 2-4 described the godless attitude of the people “Godly people have vanished from the land; there is no one upright among the people. All of them wait in ambush to shed blood; they hunt each other with a net. Both hands are good at accomplishing evil: the official and the judge demand a bribe; when the powerful man communicates his evil desire, they plot it together. The best of them is like a brier; the most upright is worse than a hedge of thorns.”
But despite the wretched situation of the nation, the Prophet saw something different, had said “I will look unto the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me” It is worthy of note that in a situation of reckless impunity and hopelessness, the God of the covenant was there in the thought of Prophet Micah, he was convinced of the impossibility of the frustration of the purposes of God – “I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted.” (Job 42:2). In spite of the difficulties of his days, the prophet knew that the purposes of God regarding the nation would ultimately come to pass – “For the LORD of hosts has purposed, And who will annul it? His hand is stretched out, And who will turn it back?” Isa 14:27; Isa.43:13)
The prophet declared, “I will wait for the God of my salvation.” And he is very confident that his God will hear him – even in an ungodly world where there is no trust, “the Lord is still faithful to His own”. The Prophet believes in the sovereign grace of God. It is the sovereign power of God that can bring into fulfillment that which the Lord had promised to do in our lives.
Our present world is no different from the days of Prophet Micah and there is no evidence that things will improve. But the beloved of the Lord can learn a great deal from Prophet Micah’s standpoint in the time of difficulties. Just like Micah, we must develop a faith that is able to look out and see the dangers, the catastrophes and the trials that faced the people of our days, (Micah certainly saw their sins and their failures, and the fact that they were coming under the judgment of God), but nevertheless in those circumstances, his faith looked up to the Lord God “Therefore I will look unto the LORD,” and in seeing the Lord God, Yahweh, he saw the sufficiency of his and the needs of the nation itself. Strength and comfort lies in the faith that is able by the grace of God to look up and discover the sufficiency of heaven (His grace is sufficient for me: for my strength is made perfect in weakness – 2 Cor 12:9).
The Bible tells us to “press on toward the goal” (Philippians 3:14), “run a good race” (Galatians 5:7), and “fight the good fight” (2 Timothy 4:7). Each of these acknowledges the struggle and exhorts us to keep moving forward. But there are times we become weary and even the thought of pressing, running, or fighting becomes difficult. Yet, we know we must endure – we must overcome! The question is how do we overcome? The scriptures says, “Everyone born of God overcomes the world… Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God” (1 John 5:4-5). Those who believe are those who will overcome!!
As we celebrate Christmas in our various homes and dwelling places let us re-examine this million dollar questions in our mind, “Do my life shows that I am born of God and that I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God?”
As you prepare to enter into the New Year, may the power of the Most High sustains you from falling, may His eyes continually watch over you and preserve you from every evil work, may He enlarge the path underneath your feet to keep you from slipping physically and spiritually. May every cycle of delay and frustration be broken off your life and may the power of the risen Christ be manifested in your life to the glory of God. May you be clothed with “the Elijah mantle” releasing the anointing to speak the mind of God, energized to run the distance, do great exploit for God and outrun the horses and chariots of your enemies and distractors. Every parched ground in your life shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water. The divine treasury of heaven will be opened on to you as you hope and trust in the Lord. May all your effort be crowned with success and may your testimony forever be – “THE LORD IS GOOD TO ME”.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
Baruch Ha Shem Adonai (בָּרוּךְ שֵׁם יְהוָה)
(Blessed be the Name of the Lord!)
Brought to you by Oreolu John Akinduro