(by James MacDonald)
For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.
2 Corinthians 1: 20
By nature, God is a promiser. He's made a ton of them to His children. A promise is the assurance that God gives to His people so they can walk by faith while they wait for Him to work.
You don't realize how much you need God's promises until your smooth and easy life suddenly turns sideways. This is the time to dig into God's Word and get something to wrap your faith around.
Now the Christian life would be easy if the space in time is small between when you claim God's promises and when you receive what He promised. Read it one day and get it the next. Wow - wouldn't that be great!?
But life's not like that.
The hard part is in the waiting between the promise and the answer; and even harder, when the waiting comes with uncertainties.
Where's this going? Where am I going to end up? What's my future look like?
The reality is, we just don't know and it's this not-knowing that crushes us. We doubt because we don't know. We worry and despair because we don't know. We falter and sometimes fail - all because we don't know. If only we knew how this trial was going to play out, we would be OK. But we don't.
I can take a bad day. I can take a bad month. I can even take a bad year or bad decade, if I have to, as long as I know how it will end up. For some of you it's a health crisis. For another, it's a question about your marriage or an uncertainty with a child. For someone else, it's a restlessness in your soul. We all have areas of uncertainty where we need to hold on to what God has said. His promises are what we cling to while we wait for Him to work. Our faith is in God. He knows what He has promised, He can't lie, and He can't forget. He will deliver on time, all the time. Who else can make promises like that?
Now I wish I could tell you that it always figures out perfectly in our lifetimes, but I would be lying to you. You cannot make sense of the promises of God with this life only. You must factor the reality of eternity into the equation. Eternity brings it all together. The promises of eternal life and the assurance of hope in heaven are what make God's promises exceedingly great and precious.
God, forgive us for thinking that everything must make sense today in the economy of our human satisfaction. Give us faith to believe that we're here for a purpose that is greater than ourselves, greater than our personal enjoyment, even greater than our participation in building Your kingdom. Our lives are about a legacy-Your glory. Amen.
* Name a promise that God has made to You in His Word that You need to remember today.
* What promise do you cling to that will only make sense in eternity?
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Why Waiting is Really Trusting
(by Daniel Darling)
Nobody hates waiting more than I do. At Wal-mart, I use the self-checkout, because there is usually no line. Unless, of course, I commit the unpardonable crime of putting the bread on the wrong plastic bag and the machine begins yelling at me. Then, of course, I have to wait for the human to come over and fix the machine.
At the post office, I hate waiting an hour to mail a package. So I usually use the automated box that allows me to send anything slightly smaller than an elephant.
I especially don’t like sitting in traffic in the Chicago suburbs, where I believe they widen the roads once every 76 years. So I have a better chance of seeing Haley’s Comet than getting into the turn lane on my local highways. Nice.
So you can understand that I have an especially tough time waiting on God. He just doesn’t seem to fit His plans into my rushed, hurried, panicked world. And in reading the Scriptures, I’ve learned that He hasn’t changed.
In fact, almost all of the great men in the Bible had to wait. Some agonizingly long. Let’s look at three examples.
Your Prince is Ready
Though Moses grew up in the house of Pharoah and was groomed to be the next in line for the throne, I believe he saw all of this as God raising him up to deliver his people, Israel. His mother probably had something to do with that.
As the years passed and Moses looked from the window of his stately palace and saw the oppression of his brethren, he grew more and more impatient. Finally, he acted on impulse and killed an Egyptian taskmaster.
So that meant 40 years in the wilderness. Here God’s people were suffering and their future deliverer is leading sheep in the backside of the desert. Yet God wasn’t delaying. He wasn’t stalling. He wasn’t anxious.
Finally, when Moses was broken and humble enough to be used as an instrument by God, God sent the 80-year old prince-turned-shepherd back to Egypt.
But do you see what his happening? The headlines wouldn’t read, “Prince leads coup. Prince leads revolt. Prince overtakes Pharaoh.” No, I wouldn’t be about Moses anymore. It would be about God. How about, “God Miraculously Delivers His People.”?
Dreams of Greatness
As a young man, God spoke to Joseph through dreams. In these dreams, Joseph was leading and his brothers and even world leaders were bowing at his feet. Kind of heady stuff for a teenager, don’t you think? And it didn’t play too well with his brothers.
But Joseph knew God was calling him to a special place. A place of impact and leadership and power.
So that’s why Joseph was probably stunned and shocked when he found himself in the bottom of a pit, praying his brothers wouldn’t kill him. Or when he found himself sold into a strange country, Egypt. Or when he was thrust into prison on rape charges.
Didn’t seem like those dreams were panning out too well, did it? Didn’t seem like God was working out His plan?
Oh, but God was working out his plan. And Joseph, while he didn’t know a lot, He knew He could trust God.
Running for King
Okay, so this prophet comes to his house, dumps some oil on his head, and then whispers in his ear, “Oh by the way, you’re going to be Israel’s next king.” But then it was back to the shepherd’s fields, back to being the forgotten son and brother, back to obscurity.
David was anointed king as a teenager, but he waited 14 long years to assume the throne. And those 14 years were hard years. He was Israel’s next king, but there was his madman, Saul, who was determined to see David dead and buried.
If you read the psalms you can experience David’s angst. He scratched his head in wonder, “Why is God allowing Saul to do this?” “Why doesn’t God just move Saul out of the way?”
But again, like Moses, like Joseph, David had to learn to trust God. And waiting, is trusting. David had to be broken, humble, and read to lead God’s people.
Do you see a pattern developing here? God often gives his people a dream, a desire, a calling and then puts them through a period of waiting.
It is in this waiting where your real courage and character are forged. It is in this period of uncertainty that you’re life takes on a whole new dimension. You learn how to trust God. You learn to lean on God. You learn what’s important and what’s not important.
So if you’re like me and you really hate to wait, know that waiting is trusting.
Nobody hates waiting more than I do. At Wal-mart, I use the self-checkout, because there is usually no line. Unless, of course, I commit the unpardonable crime of putting the bread on the wrong plastic bag and the machine begins yelling at me. Then, of course, I have to wait for the human to come over and fix the machine.
At the post office, I hate waiting an hour to mail a package. So I usually use the automated box that allows me to send anything slightly smaller than an elephant.
I especially don’t like sitting in traffic in the Chicago suburbs, where I believe they widen the roads once every 76 years. So I have a better chance of seeing Haley’s Comet than getting into the turn lane on my local highways. Nice.
So you can understand that I have an especially tough time waiting on God. He just doesn’t seem to fit His plans into my rushed, hurried, panicked world. And in reading the Scriptures, I’ve learned that He hasn’t changed.
In fact, almost all of the great men in the Bible had to wait. Some agonizingly long. Let’s look at three examples.
Your Prince is Ready
Though Moses grew up in the house of Pharoah and was groomed to be the next in line for the throne, I believe he saw all of this as God raising him up to deliver his people, Israel. His mother probably had something to do with that.
As the years passed and Moses looked from the window of his stately palace and saw the oppression of his brethren, he grew more and more impatient. Finally, he acted on impulse and killed an Egyptian taskmaster.
So that meant 40 years in the wilderness. Here God’s people were suffering and their future deliverer is leading sheep in the backside of the desert. Yet God wasn’t delaying. He wasn’t stalling. He wasn’t anxious.
Finally, when Moses was broken and humble enough to be used as an instrument by God, God sent the 80-year old prince-turned-shepherd back to Egypt.
But do you see what his happening? The headlines wouldn’t read, “Prince leads coup. Prince leads revolt. Prince overtakes Pharaoh.” No, I wouldn’t be about Moses anymore. It would be about God. How about, “God Miraculously Delivers His People.”?
Dreams of Greatness
As a young man, God spoke to Joseph through dreams. In these dreams, Joseph was leading and his brothers and even world leaders were bowing at his feet. Kind of heady stuff for a teenager, don’t you think? And it didn’t play too well with his brothers.
But Joseph knew God was calling him to a special place. A place of impact and leadership and power.
So that’s why Joseph was probably stunned and shocked when he found himself in the bottom of a pit, praying his brothers wouldn’t kill him. Or when he found himself sold into a strange country, Egypt. Or when he was thrust into prison on rape charges.
Didn’t seem like those dreams were panning out too well, did it? Didn’t seem like God was working out His plan?
Oh, but God was working out his plan. And Joseph, while he didn’t know a lot, He knew He could trust God.
Running for King
Okay, so this prophet comes to his house, dumps some oil on his head, and then whispers in his ear, “Oh by the way, you’re going to be Israel’s next king.” But then it was back to the shepherd’s fields, back to being the forgotten son and brother, back to obscurity.
David was anointed king as a teenager, but he waited 14 long years to assume the throne. And those 14 years were hard years. He was Israel’s next king, but there was his madman, Saul, who was determined to see David dead and buried.
If you read the psalms you can experience David’s angst. He scratched his head in wonder, “Why is God allowing Saul to do this?” “Why doesn’t God just move Saul out of the way?”
But again, like Moses, like Joseph, David had to learn to trust God. And waiting, is trusting. David had to be broken, humble, and read to lead God’s people.
Do you see a pattern developing here? God often gives his people a dream, a desire, a calling and then puts them through a period of waiting.
It is in this waiting where your real courage and character are forged. It is in this period of uncertainty that you’re life takes on a whole new dimension. You learn how to trust God. You learn to lean on God. You learn what’s important and what’s not important.
So if you’re like me and you really hate to wait, know that waiting is trusting.
Waiting for Patience
(by Betsy St. Amant)
Patience. It’s a tough word to swallow. Christians everywhere jokingly warn each other, “Don’t pray for patience! You’ll get it!” And we’ve all heard the joke,” I prayed for patience but I’m just not getting it fast enough!”
Funny or not, it’s true that we are all impatient by nature. I'm learning this more and more as I delve further into my writing career. An author’s world is seemingly controlled by that single little word "wait". We write and wait. Submit and wait. Receive word and wait. Resubmit and wait. We wait for edits, cover art, ISBN numbers, first releases, etc. It’s a process that just takes time, and though it is by far worth every moment spent; sometimes having patience is just plain hard.
It’s been said that we live in a microwave generation. In this day and age, we obtain things now faster than ever before, and yet it’s still not good enough, not fast enough for our speedy preferences. Nuked popcorn still takes too long to pop. Full dinners in a skillet take too long to heat. Our fast food bags don’t pop out the drive-through window quickly enough for our taste. We get married and expect to have the same things our parents have after twenty-five years of marriage! A new car, a nice house, extra spending money. These things all take time to acquire, yet our hurried, frantic minds can’t grasp the concept. We don’t want to be patient. We want things now.
I’d like to think that I'm a decently patient person. I get anxious about things, of course, but overall, I understand that "good things come to those who wait" and that usually, the end result is well worth the time spent. Yet knowing this and applying it to my life and career sometimes takes on a different perspective!
Why is patience so hard for us? Why do we want what we want, right when we want it? Why can’t we be content to sit back and trust the Lord’s timing over our own anxiety and urgency?
I believe it all goes back to control. Having patience means surrendering control of our lives to Jesus, the ultimate Timekeeper. It means saying “I’ll wait for You, Lord, because I trust You.” And that’s hard to do. It’s difficult not knowing what will happen. We live in a world that operates by plans, lists, details, and organization. How can we plan or make a list or organize if we don’t know what’s coming? If we don’t know what to expect?
It’s simple: we can’t. That’s where trust comes in. And you can’t have trust without first surrendering control.
Your palms might be growing sweaty right at the mere thought. Let go? Let Jesus truly take full control of my life? But what if His plans don’t match up with mine? What if He doesn’t want the same things for me that I’ve desired my entire life? How can I trust that? How can I know He won’t lead me astray?
Good questions. And I realized something recently while thinking about this dreaded little word "wait". A vivid image popped into my mind that I’d like to share with you.
Have you ever been blindfolded? I played games like this at youth camp. Silly exercises on the surface, but deep down, they taught us as teenagers how to build trust and become better teammates. Our group leader would tie a thick bandanna around my eyes and I would be guided by an un-blindfolded partner through an obstacle course. The entire point was to learn to trust my teammate's voice and instructions. If he said "go right", I moved to the right. If he said “step up”, I’d step up and over the object in front of me. I’d take baby steps or giant steps according to his commands. I’d back up, scoot over, crawl, etc. I did whatever it took to get through the obstacle without seeing. I literally had to blindly trust my partner, who saw the whole picture.
It's a lot like that in our spiritual lives. We, as Christians, are blindfolded. We can't see the entire picture. Our view is limited, and we're stumbling around, confused as to which direction we should go. And unfortunately, more often than not, we tend to ignore the voice of our Lord instructing us to safety. To success. To fulfillment.
How will we ever know where to go, or worse yet, where not to go, if we don't listen to Him? We'll never cross the finish line by stubbornly insisting we can manage on our own. God sees the entire path before us. He knows what's coming, what has been, what is, and still has a plan for each one of us. As Christians, we have to trust that. Whether that means waiting, walking, crawling, taking baby steps, running, etc.
Are you listening to the voice of our Savior today? I am. I'm going to keep waiting and keep trusting. And when I hear that still small voice instructing me to walk, I'll do so boldly and with confidence that I am on the right path.
It will be worth the wait.
Patience. It’s a tough word to swallow. Christians everywhere jokingly warn each other, “Don’t pray for patience! You’ll get it!” And we’ve all heard the joke,” I prayed for patience but I’m just not getting it fast enough!”
Funny or not, it’s true that we are all impatient by nature. I'm learning this more and more as I delve further into my writing career. An author’s world is seemingly controlled by that single little word "wait". We write and wait. Submit and wait. Receive word and wait. Resubmit and wait. We wait for edits, cover art, ISBN numbers, first releases, etc. It’s a process that just takes time, and though it is by far worth every moment spent; sometimes having patience is just plain hard.
It’s been said that we live in a microwave generation. In this day and age, we obtain things now faster than ever before, and yet it’s still not good enough, not fast enough for our speedy preferences. Nuked popcorn still takes too long to pop. Full dinners in a skillet take too long to heat. Our fast food bags don’t pop out the drive-through window quickly enough for our taste. We get married and expect to have the same things our parents have after twenty-five years of marriage! A new car, a nice house, extra spending money. These things all take time to acquire, yet our hurried, frantic minds can’t grasp the concept. We don’t want to be patient. We want things now.
I’d like to think that I'm a decently patient person. I get anxious about things, of course, but overall, I understand that "good things come to those who wait" and that usually, the end result is well worth the time spent. Yet knowing this and applying it to my life and career sometimes takes on a different perspective!
Why is patience so hard for us? Why do we want what we want, right when we want it? Why can’t we be content to sit back and trust the Lord’s timing over our own anxiety and urgency?
I believe it all goes back to control. Having patience means surrendering control of our lives to Jesus, the ultimate Timekeeper. It means saying “I’ll wait for You, Lord, because I trust You.” And that’s hard to do. It’s difficult not knowing what will happen. We live in a world that operates by plans, lists, details, and organization. How can we plan or make a list or organize if we don’t know what’s coming? If we don’t know what to expect?
It’s simple: we can’t. That’s where trust comes in. And you can’t have trust without first surrendering control.
Your palms might be growing sweaty right at the mere thought. Let go? Let Jesus truly take full control of my life? But what if His plans don’t match up with mine? What if He doesn’t want the same things for me that I’ve desired my entire life? How can I trust that? How can I know He won’t lead me astray?
Good questions. And I realized something recently while thinking about this dreaded little word "wait". A vivid image popped into my mind that I’d like to share with you.
Have you ever been blindfolded? I played games like this at youth camp. Silly exercises on the surface, but deep down, they taught us as teenagers how to build trust and become better teammates. Our group leader would tie a thick bandanna around my eyes and I would be guided by an un-blindfolded partner through an obstacle course. The entire point was to learn to trust my teammate's voice and instructions. If he said "go right", I moved to the right. If he said “step up”, I’d step up and over the object in front of me. I’d take baby steps or giant steps according to his commands. I’d back up, scoot over, crawl, etc. I did whatever it took to get through the obstacle without seeing. I literally had to blindly trust my partner, who saw the whole picture.
It's a lot like that in our spiritual lives. We, as Christians, are blindfolded. We can't see the entire picture. Our view is limited, and we're stumbling around, confused as to which direction we should go. And unfortunately, more often than not, we tend to ignore the voice of our Lord instructing us to safety. To success. To fulfillment.
How will we ever know where to go, or worse yet, where not to go, if we don't listen to Him? We'll never cross the finish line by stubbornly insisting we can manage on our own. God sees the entire path before us. He knows what's coming, what has been, what is, and still has a plan for each one of us. As Christians, we have to trust that. Whether that means waiting, walking, crawling, taking baby steps, running, etc.
Are you listening to the voice of our Savior today? I am. I'm going to keep waiting and keep trusting. And when I hear that still small voice instructing me to walk, I'll do so boldly and with confidence that I am on the right path.
It will be worth the wait.
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