However, my trust is still in God, no matter what He does or allows. I pray that my confidence in God on the throne remains strong.
Somewhere in my Christian walk, I started to become very dialed into listening to or reading the news of the day, although I had been fairly apathetic about it in the past. I can trace this urge back to when I listened to Dr. Jim Dobson on the Focus on the Family program during my commutes to work. I was a fairly new Christian at that time, but his urgings to be aware of and prepared to take action regarding the many issues going on in this country and in the world certainly resonated with me because I had two small children and was very concerned about the world in which they would grow up.
So, I must admit that I am still fairly addicted to listening to the news more than 30 years later, and now with my daughter having four children, I am concerned about the world in which my grandchildren will grow up. Frankly, it’s a lot more worrisome than when my children were growing up, and believe me, there is so much to pray for regarding that. Some Christians I know have said that they do not want to hear or read the news because there is so much bad news. True, but this IS a fallen world, and the condition of the world does provide me with plenty of fodder for prayer.
Is the United States Practicing a Dual Justice System?
With all that said, it is very easy to feel frustrated with the way different political groups are treated by our justice system, at least in the eyes of some members of the U.S. House of Representatives and more conservative-leaning news channels. For example, I see former President Donald Trump charged with all kinds of crimes while a great deal of evidence has been uncovered alleging that President Joe Biden, along with his son Hunter, brother James, and various other members of the Biden family have been deeply involved in various influence peddling and money laundering schemes, to say the least, and there does not seem to be any real consequences. While it is difficult for the average person who has very little inside information to make a definitive judgment regarding charges against either of these parties, there is the disturbing appearance that justice is lopsided.
That’s not all, though. A recent hearing by the House Judiciary Committee took place in which FBI Director Christopher Wray was grilled on various issues regarding people with conservative Christian values being targeted by the FBI as potential “domestic terrorists” because they stand firmly for biblical morality. This means they openly defend the lives of preborn babies, object to having their children indoctrinated into all kinds of perverse sexual ideology, or have the effrontery, as Catholics, to favor the Latin mass. Although having grown up Catholic, I have no real interest in the Latin mass, I would still say, “Why is this the FBI’s business?” Sadly, it seems, Director Wray said little in response to any of these allegations.
Then I was appalled by a news story in which a sixteen-year-old girl, Abbigail Wheeler, was cut from a YMCA swim team after she and a friend posted signs in the girls’ locker room reading, “Biological Women Only,” “Women’s Rights,” and “Safe Sports.” The young lady was clearly very uncomfortable with a male claiming to be a transgender girl undressing in her space. She expected that the coach would support her feelings, but instead, that coach suggested that she should not participate in the event she was preparing for, and she was eventually cut from the team. The YMCA insisted, in a released statement, that Wheeler had actually voluntarily left the team; yet she is insisting that her version of events is the correct one. Riley Gaines, who has boldly spoken out against allowing transgender “women” on biological women’s athletic teams, has endured threats to her safety when speaking at a college venue, and no consequences have been dealt to those who harassed and intimidated her at that venue. It seems here that natural and normal feminine modesty is something to be punished these days, and this is not the only situation in which girls and women have suffered consequences for insisting on personal modesty.
My Dilemma
When I witness so much hostility to the morals and behavior standards this country has honored since its foundation, some fear seeing evil being called good and good evil (Isaiah 5:20) in the U.S. and elsewhere with many innocent people just living their lives quietly but willing to speak up when they see something wrong. These seem to be the people who certain law enforcement authorities are pursuing as if they were criminals. It’s at these times that I have to take comfort in God’s Word.
A while back, one of my church’s leaders spoke in a Sunday sermon about the dilemma the prophet Habakkuk dealt with when he saw the wicked prospering and experiencing no consequences for the evil they did, feeling that it was so unjust. He took his complaint straight to God. Habakkuk wrote this book between 612 and 588 B.C. when Babylon was rising in world power. Then, in 605 B.C., Babylon (yes, an evil empire) would descend upon Jerusalem, defeat it, and carry off many captives, including Daniel and his friends – Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Before that, the prophet Habakkuk cried out the following lament to God because he saw Judah steeped in seemingly unrestrained evil (Habakkuk 1:2-4, NKJV):
“O Lord, how long shall I cry,
And You will not hear?
Even cry out to You, ‘Violence!’
And You will not save.
Why do you show me iniquity,
And cause me to see trouble?
For plundering and violence are before me,
There is strife and contention arises.
Therefore the law is powerless,
And justice never goes forth.
For the wicked surround the righteous;
Therefore perverse judgment proceeds.”
Does that sound familiar? It certainly does to me, and it seems like we are living in very similar times. In the face of all the news about injustice and grotesque evil that is done in the U.S., I remembered the sermon based on Habakkuk’s conversation with God and read through the entire book (which is only three chapters). I found great consolation in reading it along with the life application notes.
The Lord replied to Habakkuk’s opening complaint and tells him that he will be astounded at the way in which He will deal with Judah’s wickedness. In fact, God tells Habakkuk, “Look at the nations and watch – be utterly astounded! For I will work a work in your days which you would not believe though it were told you” (vs. 5). Then He tells Habakkuk that He is raising up the Chaldeans (aka Babylon) to be Judah’s discipline, which will clearly not be a pretty sight.
Habakkuk then replied to God, asking why He was using an ungodly nation such as Babylon to discipline Judah, saying as steeped in sin as Judah probably was at the time, it was not as evil as Babylon. Habakkuk says, “You are of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on wickedness. Why do You look on those who deal treacherously, and hold Your tongue when the wicked devours a person more righteous than he?” (vs. 13).
Then, in chapter 3, after acknowledging God’s awesome power and sovereignty, Habakkuk ends the conversation in a passionate expression of trust in and praise for God:
“Though the fig tree may not blossom,
Nor fruit be on the vines;
Though the labor of the olive may fail,
And the fields yield no food;
Though the flock may be cut off from the fold,
And there be no herd in the stalls –
Yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
I will joy in the God of my salvation." (Habakkuk 3:17-18, NKJV)
Keeping My Eyes on God, Not Circumstances
As I look at the state of corruption in the highest offices of the U.S. and see the tide of evil that not even God’s saints seem to be able to hold back, I cannot help but wonder whether God is in the process of disciplining the U.S. now, using much of the current leadership, especially in the executive branch. Or will he use a much harsher form of discipline to turn people in the U.S. back to Him? As God used Babylon to discipline Israel, could He use China, the godless country many people agree is a huge threat to us, as our discipline? Or are we finally approaching the End Times?
Yes, there are many questions in my mind regarding what will happen in the short or long term. However, my trust is still in God, no matter what He does or allows. I pray that my confidence in God on the throne remains strong.
So, I cling to the following verse:
“Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10, NKJV)
Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/Ig0rZh
Cathy Wentz lives with her husband, Brian, in Cedar City, UT, and has been a believer in Jesus Christ for more than 30 years. She has two grown children and four grandchildren, all who live in Cedar City. Her writing experience includes working as a newspaper reporter for eight years, and she currently serves as a public relations assistant for a local orthopaedic surgeon, which involves writing blogs, social media posts and other web content.
