Marissa Henley

Encouraging weary women to hope in Christ alone

God is Still Working {No Matter What Monday}

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Have you ever found yourself in a difficult situation that just keeps getting worse? In the short Old Testament book Habakkuk, we get to hear a conversation between the prophet and God. Habakkuk cries out to God because of the wickedness and oppression he sees around him and begs God to intervene (Habakkuk 1:1-4). Then the Lord replies: 

“Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told.” (Habakkuk 1:5)

This sounds like just the answer Habakkuk is looking for, right? But then we keep reading. God goes on to say that He’s going to bring in the Chaldeans (aka, the Babylonians) and that they are even more violent and wicked than the current Assyrian oppressors. 

Wait, what?! I can only imagine the look on Habakkuk’s face as he absorbs this news: things are bad, and they’re getting worse. 

Have you ever felt like God has abandoned you in your suffering? Maybe you struggle to see how He’s at work in your situation. You’ve prayed and begged and pleaded but it feels like God hasn’t shown up. 

When Habakkuk hears this discouraging response from the Lord, he reminds himself of the truth of God’s character. He affirms God’s eternality, holiness, sovereignty, and love for justice (Habakkuk 1:12-17). He trusts God to work in a way consistent with His character. 

This month we are going to look at the continuing conversation between God and Habakkuk. We will see what it means to live by faith in suffering. We will see the precious promise of God’s reign over all and the joy we have in His salvation. 

But today, I want us to remember this: God is at work. It’s not always the answer we’re hoping for. But our God rules over the nations and over every day of our lives. He never stops working in a way that is consistent with His character. He is faithful in all that He does. 

No matter what you face this week, God is at work even when things are getting worse. 

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All God’s Work is Faithful {No Matter What Monday}

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It’s the question every stay-at-home mom dreads: “What did you do all day?” 

When I stayed home with my littles, I never knew how to answer this question. I had been busy all day, but I had nothing to show for it. I changed diapers that were soon dirty again. I put the blocks back in the bin so my son could dump them back out. I fixed food, fed the little people (further contributing to the diaper situation mentioned above), cleaned up the kitchen, and started the entire process over a few hours later. I knew to an outsider (or to my husband when he came home from work), it would look like I’d done nothing all day. 

Do you ever wonder what God’s been up to? Days, weeks, months go by, and you’re still hurting. Your problems haven’t been solved. Your relationship is still broken, your disease hasn’t been healed, your pain seems ever-present. You feel like asking God, “What did you do all day?!” 

When we don’t understand what God’s doing, let’s remember these beautiful words from Psalm 33: 

“For the word of the LORD is upright, and all his work is done in faithfulness.” (Ps. 33:4)

The first part of the verse tells us that God’s Word is right. He cannot lie. His Word is good and perfect and true. 

Then we read that all God’s work is done in faithfulness. (I wish I could say the same about my own work!) His work always reflects the promises of His good, perfect, and true Word. 

God’s faithfulness is His complete, unfailing, forever commitment to keep every one of His promises. As He works in our world and in every moment of our lives, His work always puts His faithfulness on display. 

We may not understand what God’s doing, but we do know this: In all that He does, He is faithful. 

No matter what you face this week, all God’s work is done in faithfulness. 

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Supporting a Friend with Cancer {Podcast appearance at Don’t Mom Alone}

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I had the honor of chatting with Heather from the Don’t Mom Alone podcast recently about how we can support a friend with cancer. We covered how to not say the wrong thing, how to avoid burnout when caring for your friend, how to go the extra mile when taking a meal, and so much more. I hope you’ll check it out here!

While you’re there, check out some of the fantastic guests Heather has had on the show. Her podcast has been such an encouragement to me as I seek to glorify God with my parenting!

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You are Justified by Faith {No Matter What Monday}

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I’m really showing off my geek badge here, but it’s true: I love editing. I can’t read anything without wanting to pull out a red pen, eliminate the word clutter, fix the grammatical mistakes, and improve the writing in any way I can. I even self-edit text messages before sending them. (Don’t worry, I don’t edit other people’s texts!) 😉 

When I read Galatians 2:16, I want to reach for my red pen. Paul seems to be running around in circles, saying the same thing over and over: 

“Yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.” (Galatians 2:16)

We’re not justified by works but by faith . . . And we have believed, so we are justified . . . Oh, and did I mention that it’s by faith in Christ and not by works? . . . Right, because no one can be justified by the works of the law. Ok, Paul! We get it! 

Why isn’t Paul being more concise? Did he forget to run this letter by his editor? 

I think Paul is being wordy and repetitive on purpose. He knows we will read this and mentally agree with it, but then an hour later we’ll be out there acting like it’s up to us to earn God’s favor. It’s so ingrained in our human nature to think our value depends on our performance. 

This is good news we need to hear over and over and over again: We are justified through faith in Christ and not by works of the law. To be justified means we are declared righteous by God. He looks at Jesus and sees His perfect record of righteousness. Based on His perfection, we are declared righteous. We could never earn this righteousness, but God gives it to us as a free gift of His grace. 

If you didn’t earn it, you can’t lose it. Justification by faith is a certainty we can cling to even when we fall short, mess up, or even fail miserably. 

No matter what you face this week, you are justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law. 

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