What are you waiting for?

Waiting is not easy, but it is a daily activity...we wait:
-for the alarm to go off for the 3rd time
-for the water to become warm in the shower
-for the iron to heat up
-for the garage door to open
-for the stop lights to turn green (well, some of us do)
-for lunch time to come
-for the weekend...
...the list goes on and on.

However, when it comes to stages in life it suddenly becomes more challenging.  Are you growing weary as you wait for a steady job, a life partner, or the "revelation" of God's purpose for your life?  It can be easy to become discouraged with your current condition or apparent inactivity.

I have been encouraged lately with the stories of great men throughout the Bible who experienced times of waiting.  Abraham waited until he was 100 years old before being blessed with a son.  Jacob waited years before he could marry Rachel.  Joseph also waited years in a prison before rising to second in command in Egypt.  Moses waited for 40 years in the desert before leading millions of people out of Egypt (to wait 40 more years in the desert because of disobedience.)  David waited in the protection of caves and mountains before ascending the throne to become king.  Even Jesus waited till age 30 to begin most of His ministry.  Then He waited three days before rising from the grave, victorious over death!


 Here are just a few powerful verses regarding waiting. 

"The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.  It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.  It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth." - Lamentations 3:25-27

"Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD." - Psalm 27:14

"I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.  My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning..." - Psalm 130:5-6


Wait on God.  Be diligent where He has put you and seek Him as you wait.  What are you waiting for?

The Story of your Life

Daring escapades.  Heroic characters.  Evil plots.  Steadfast friendships.  Cruel threats.  Enduring promises. Overwhelming catastrophes.  Glorious miracles.  It is an epic story...it is your life.

I propose that the "Author and Finisher of your faith" has written a beautiful story of your life for you to discover.  Though there may be fewer and shorter chapters in some people's stories, all have been masterfully written with purpose and destiny. The setting may change when you move from your home.  The scenario may be altered with the introduction of new characters.  The synopsis of a year may be transformed when an accident occurs.  But the story is still the same.  It is your life.

What if you neglect the need to help a struggling friend or disregard the stranger who God intentionally places in your path?  Your story will still go on, but there will be characters and plots that are "missing."  They have been skipped.  Imagine how different your story would be now if you had never met your best friend or made a big decision differently.  Now imagine what your story would look like if you followed the Holy Spirit and lived out the fullness of the story that God has written for you.

Will you eagerly accommodate all of the characters God has placed in your story and enthusiastically achieve your life's full potential?  What will people remember when they "read your story?"  Does your story relate the glory and goodness of God?  Will people read your story and remember your greatness, or will they read God's story of you and praise His greatness.  Go discover your story.  It is exciting.  It is extraordinary.  It is your life.

Fighting for Crumbs

The water was so clear that you could see to the bottom.  The fish, plants, and rocks were clearly visible, almost like an aquarium.  As I sat beside the Gideon Springs in the land of Israel, I attempted to take some time to pray and read God's word.  However, I was distracted.  A small boy and his father tossed a large piece of bread in the water and I watched with intrigue as a large school of fish swarmed around the food and began devouring the morsel of bread.  The intensity of the struggle was demonstrated by the way the bread bobbed up and down in the water.  The smaller fish had a significant disadvantage because of their size, however, they joined the fight as well by launching themselves into the fray from above, continually leaping out of the water and over the bigger fish.  I began to acquire a feeling of sympathy for the smaller fish when suddenly I noticed a second piece of bread thrown into the water by the small boy.  I was relieved to see that more food was provided until I noticed a strange occurrence took place.  The bread was left untouched.  While it is true that the boy had not thrown the bread quite as far as the first time, it was not more than 10 feet from the battle of the bread.  I was baffled.  How could they not see or notice?  I wanted to shout to the fish and make them aware of the additional food that was provided.  But they could not hear nor understand. 

How many times are we like those little fish?  We exert ourselves to the fullest in pursuit of the meager meal which everyone else is fighting for, when God the Father has sent His son to provide a banquet for us to enjoy if we will turn our back on that which cannot satisfy.  We struggle and fight for table scraps of temporary satisfaction that will cause us to return for more when Christ has "...preparest a table before [us] in the presence of mine enemies." (Psalm 23:5)  Are you satisfied with the green pastures that your Good Shepherd has led you to, or are you wandering off to eat of the grass that is "greener on the other side?"

Take a step back.  Look around.  Do you see the futility of striving for worldly pleasures that will only satisfy for a season?  Partake of the feast which your Heavenly Father has prepared.  Stop fighting for the crumbs!!!

And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. (John 6:35)

 

 

Learning by the waters of the Gideon Springs

 

 

Becoming Blind in order to See

"And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.  And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting."  God's presence penetrated this place and pervaded the position with His power and purity.  Peter lifted up his voice and recalled the prophecy of Joel, "And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:"  As a young man, I was curious as to the meaning of "visions."  So I looked it up and found that it means "the act of gazing...an inspired appearance." 

I want to see God.  Not just a momentary glimpse or brief sighting but a prolonged exposure, a continual feasting.  The problem comes when I go looking for Him.  When I read His word, I glance at His presence instead of gazing into His face.  Somehow, I expect to discover the depths of His character without sacrificing the minimal effort needed to gaze upon Him.  When you stare at someone or something, you notice details and qualities that you never saw before.  If I truly desire to see God and learn more about Him, then I will gaze into His face.

When you stare into a light source, the results can often be damaging, often causing total blindness.  Because Jesus is the Light of the World, staring into the brightness of His face results in a blindness to the world and the distractions therein.  As we begin to overlook the temporal and earthly things because of our blind condition, we will begin to catch a glimpse of God's marvelous plan and our eyes will be opened in a new way.

Gaze.  Don't Glance.  Become blind and begin to see. 

God's Voice of Thunder

Thunder. Lightning. Storms. These demonstrations of the glory of God have always fascinated me because of the power which they exhibit. The incredible feeling that comes from standing outside in the rushing wind as the sky turns dark and a heaviness fills the air with the deep rumbling of clouds colliding overhead...there's nothing quite like it. Last night, the thunder crashed and the lightning flashed in response to the whispering wind that slowly crept through the trees. The bright flashes of lightning seemed to temporarily fake the brightness of day as they lit up the entire landscape in momentary bursts of illumination. Soon after these bright flashes temporarily exposed the scenery, the thunder would roar with such power and authority that the windows would shake and my bones would quake. As this simple process repeated itself over and over again, I began to grow accustomed to the phenomenon and eventually disregarded the powerful natural demonstration of God's power as simply another storm. I shut the window blinds to close out the light flashes, but my efforts were of ill affect. The thunder continued to rumble and the lightning continued to invade the room with its light as if unaffected by the barrier of the window coverings. Nonetheless, I chose to disregard this activity and fell asleep with knowledge that the storm would pass over by the morning.

Just as the thunder roared and the lightning flashed during this storm, God has brought storms into my life to demonstrate His power and authority. His thundering voice proclaims righteousness to the nations and judgement to the workers of iniquity. The bright flashes of His marvelous light expose every wicked thing of darkness as in the brightness of the middle of day. He speaks in a still small voice just as the wind whispers through the trees within the violent storm.

He is calling to me. I have been given the choice to acknowledge His power and authority or to attempt to ignore the manifestation of His glory by sleeping in the comfort and protection of my own confidence. What decision will be made? Will I acknowledge the creator of the universe and submit to His authority and unconditional love, or will I disregard His power and majestic expression of love for the purpose of resting in my own self-confidence and self-made protection? What will you decide today?

“At this also my heart trembles and leaps out of its place. Keep listening to the thunder of his voice and the rumbling that comes from his mouth. Under the whole heaven he lets it go, and his lightning to the corners of the earth. After it his voice roars; he thunders with his majestic voice, and he does not restrain the lightnings when his voice is heard. God thunders wondrously with his voice; he does great things that we cannot comprehend.” (Job 37:1-5 ESV)

“And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps: And they sung as it were a new song before the throne...” (Revelation 14:1-3)

Live like you're Dead

"For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." (Galatians 2:19-20)

Life in death.  How can such a phenomena exist?  As Christians, we have been freed from the power of sin through the sacrificial work of Christ on the cross.  “Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin." To become aware of this freedom is to know hope and joy.  We know that “sin shall not have dominion over [us]” because Jesus has crushed the power of sin and provided a “way of escape.”  If we will consider ourselves “to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord,” we will experience the fullness of life that God has intended for all those that love Him.  “What shall we say then?  Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?  God forbid.  How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” 

Since we have been given abundant life through death to sin and the flesh, we are no more servants to sin, but rather servants to God.  “But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.  Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.”

“Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”

God says it so much better than I could...read Romans 6.