Habakkuk 1:14-17 And makest men as the fishes of the sea, as the creeping things, that have no ruler over them? They take up all of them with the angle, they catch them in their net, and gather them in their drag: therefore they rejoice and are glad. Therefore they sacrifice unto their net, and burn incense unto their drag; because by them their portion is fat, and their meat plenteous. Shall they therefore empty their net, and not spare continually to slay the nations?

Is this a prophetic message about past events or future events? One thing we have learned through our studies of history is that history repeats itself. Men who study the past and see the vulnerabilities of people and nations make spoil of them because they have no ruler over them. I am not talking about leaders. I am talking divine leadership, God in worship and practice.

If I were to look at these verses as the historical past, I can see events which match up fairly well. Conquerors have come and gone over the centuries between Habakkuk’s time and today. I do have to ask, because I do not want to overlook any spiritual aspects of these prophetic words, could this also indicate religious practices?

There are two distinct catch methods in play here. The angler entices the fish to bite because it hungry, its nature is to eat that which looks appealing. The other is a net drag. The forcible removal of fish without regard to size or variety. Those fish have no choice in the matter. There is no attraction, they are just trapped.

I could expand on this subject to no gain for my readers. It is not for me to name names or organizations. I am not here to serve an agenda. I would however ask you to examine how you got into your present religious position and answer for yourselves how you got there.

Joshua 1:8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

How do you measure success?

Ponder that for a moment before you read on.

Not all of us are driven to excel. Most of us exist rather than succeed. This is a competitive world and everyone that is successful at any particular endeavor has placed a priority on that endeavor. It does not matter if you are a CEO, an NBA player, an actor, a doctor, a lawyer, or a stay at home mom.

Were you raised to set goals and achieve them? Goals start out small, achievable, confirming, satisfying and when achieved you set a higher goal. We constantly need to be challenged to show progress. None of us create life time goals without first knowing what is desired.

We have all seen the high performer who has attained to the pinnacle of their career goal and watched as their personal lives have collapsed from neglect. Some lose everything, even themselves, in the fall.

Now allow me to show you what I see in this opening verse and see if this isn’t perhaps a better path towards success.

Doing as God has asked opens the doors of blessing for all the gracious wealth of God’s storehouse.

Genesis 1:28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

Have you shut the doors of God’s blessing by choosing success without God?