Tag: Mourning

Habakkuk: Choose Trust | 6-2-2024

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Updated: 11/8/2024

Sermon Prep

Life was so exciting in early June. My wife Glory was over 20 weeks pregnant with our daughter. I was flourishing at my new job I got back in December. Reunion Church was growing deeper roots via discipleship and fellowship with one another. It was a good time for us.

As one might expect when teaching through a book on wrestling and embracing lament, our congregation was ready to move onto our next series. It was going to be a character study on the life of King David, so pretty much everyone was excited about what was next. With that in mind, it was put on me to wrap up our series in Habakkuk so that we could move onto the new series.

But there was a lot of ground to cover and I wasn’t planning on combining what we at first planned to be 2 separate sermons in one. That being Habakkuk 2:2-20 and Habakkuk 3:1-19 respectively. Not the craziest amount of text to cover, but not the original plan during my prep either.

Then again, to teach requires one to be flexible like bamboo and not like glass. Most of the time, I’m as flexible as a pane of glass. Regardless, here’s the notes:

Sermon Notes

Opening Line

  • Do you trust me? Well, I don’t trust you.
    • I trust you with most things, yet not everything.

Intro

  • Andrew’s marriage and parenting advice vs his driving and movie taste.

Transition To Main Point

  • Likewise, we choose when we trust God too.

Main Point

  • God loves this world more than you do and knows what’s best for you, so choose to trust him.
  • Habakkuk 2:2-20 | God’s Response
    • Distrust leads to disorder.
      • Read Romans 1:16-25.
    • “God uses evil people to judge evil people.” – Clay Jones
      • See Genesis 50:20.
    • Every nation tailer-makes a god for itself.
      • Read Jeremiah 10:8-10.
  • Habakkuk 3:1-19 | Habakkuk’s Psalm
    • Shigionoth = a highly emotional poetic form.
    • After choosing to trust God, he sings a vow of praise.
    • “Even though I don’t know where God is, God knows where I am.” – Timothy Keller

Why This Matters

  • A promise is the assurance that someone will do something or that something will happen.
  • God promises to bring justice, defeat sin, and rescue the oppressed.

Power Text

  • Some of you don’t believe what I just said.
    • Your lament isn’t there yet and that’s ok.
  • Remember, lament is a prayer of pain that leads to trust. A spiritual journey can’t be rushed.
  • Stages of Lament:
    • Turn to God.
    • Brings complaints.
    • Ask boldly.
    • Choose trust.
    • Vow of praise.
  • Lament is dangerous because it tests all things.
  • Then again, a life guided by grace isn’t safe.
  • As C. S. Lewis puts it, “Safe? Who said anything about safe? Of course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the king.”

Final Thoughts

This was a solid message and a good end to this short series. Even though I’m not the teaching pastor, but an associate pastor I will occasionally for one reason or another teach the majority of a series. This was one of those cases along with our 2023 series through Luke.

Life just happens and the teaching schedule we have internally will reflect that too. Didn’t bother me though since I thought this one turned out quite well. Also, fun fact: this was my last hand-written sermon before moving to digital. With that, Godspeed and Jesus bless.

Habakkuk: Authentic Prayer | 5-12-2024

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Updated: 11/8/2024

Sermon Prep

I don’t know how it happens, but I have repeatedly taught sermons on Mother’s Day throughout the years and this was one of those times. It’s sort of an odd coincidence, but I think its God’s timing in that my messages on those days feel sharper and standout more than the others. To commemorate my wife Glory’s first Mother’s Day, the Friday before this sermon her and I went to the mountains to have a day in God’s creation.

Anyways, this was a powerful message to prep. In our church, multiple marriages were on the rocks and for a church of roughly 60 people that’s a lot to deal with as a community. Glory and i had our miscarriage scare. Around this time, a couple in our church lost both of their moms within the same week. It was a rocky road we walked together as a team.

In light of the sensitivity of the season, I prepped this message. Knowing some but not all of the struggles of the church. Balancing wisdom and wit to deliver a message faithful to God’s word about human heartbreak and heartache.

I think the Holy Spirit gently guided me as I wrote this sermon as I cried throughout most of the prep. It was a hard message to deliver given all of the somber circumstances. I could go on about the heaviness going on, but words wouldn’t be enough. Here’s the notes for this message and the recording too:

Sermon Notes

  • Opening Line
    • Have you ever been in an argument and said something you didn’t expect?
      • It’s surprising to blurt out how we truly feel and think about someone.

Intro

  • Have you ever heard someone pray something you didn’t expect to hear?
    • Mom’s friend lamenting stillborn children.

Transition To Main Point

  • As Andrew put it, “lament is a prayer of pain that leads to trust.”

Main Point

  • Maturity in our relationship with Jesus is defined by authentic prayer during tough times.
  • Habakkuk 1:1-4 | Habakkuk’s Complaint
    • Complaining to God about Judah the southern kingdom and its evils.
    • Questioning God’s character.
      • Is God good or loving?
      • Does God know better?
      • Is God strong enough?
      • Where is God?
    • Habakkuk feels forced to see grossly evil and immoral behavior.
    • The law is unable to act or move because justice is corrupt.
  • Authentic prayer is the act of openly sharing everything in our hearts with Jesus.
    • Trusting him with the highs and lows.

Why This Matters

  • We can’t let our pain define our perspective. That’s bitterness.
  • We also can’t hide from or suppress our pain. That’s blindness.

Power Text

  • Read 1 Peter 5:6-7 (Individual Lament).
    • Authentically pray knowing God cares for you.
  • Read Romans 12:15 (Collective Lament).
    • Obey God and share in the suffering of others.
  • Read Ecclesiastes 3:1-11 (Universal Lament).
    • In whatever season, have authentic prayer.

Final Thoughts

There’s 2 types of sermons: one that preaches and one that teaches. A message that preaches appeals to the heart and is passionate, while a message that teaches appeals to the mind and is profound. This is one of my greatest preaching messages. I couldn’t help but preach from the heart and the Holy Spirit empowered me on the day to do so.

In fact, this was one of my shortest messages as far as notes go. I truly didn’t write down all that much but the message was all the better for it. Less is more and that truth is quite evident with this sermon. Honored and proud to have had the opportunity to share this message. With that, Godspeed and Jesus bless.