Has Your Flight Been Delayed?

HAS YOUR FLIGHT BEEN DELAYED?

Psalm 4:1 “Answer me when I call to you, O my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; be merciful to me and hear my prayer.”

INTRO.- ILL.- Thirteen ministers were on a flight to New York. When they came into a large storm, they told the stewardess to tell the pilot that everything would be okay because thirteen ministers were on board. Later the stewardess returned from cockpit. “What did the pilot say?” one preacher asked. “He said he was glad to have 13 ministers on board but he would rather have four good engines.”

The moral of that story is: PREACHERS CAN’T DO EVERYTHING! We can do some things, however. AND I AM HERE TO HELP. And I want to help you. I can at least listen to you as you talk about your problem. I can sympathize with you, because I have not been without problems in my life. And I can pray with you, because banding together in prayer helps. Please call me.

Ephesians 6:18 “Always keep on praying for all the saints.”

James 5:16 “Therefore confess your sins (weaknesses, failures, problems) to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”

We need to support one another in prayer. PLEASE LET ME DO THAT FOR YOU!

ILL.- A certain airliner flew into a violent storm and was soon swaying and bumping around all over the place. One very nervous lady happened to be sitting next to a preacher and turned to him for comfort. “Can’t you do something?” she demanded.

He replied, “I’m sorry ma’am, I’M IN SALES, NOT MANAGEMENT.” That’s me. I don’t make the rules, I just try to sell the product. I don’t perform miracles, but I point people to the One who can.

ILL.- After a long delay at the gate while waiting to depart, the Captain finally came on the PA system and announced, “I’m sorry for the delay, but the machine that smashes your baggage and pulls the handles off is broken, so the ground crew is having to do it by hand.”

Have you ever had anything like that happen to you? If nothing else, people who fly a lot have had their baggage lost. And those who fly frequently have had to face many delays at the airport.

Brethren, has your flight ever been delayed? It happens all the time, and especially this last year.

ILL.- By Robert Hager NBC NEWS WASHINGTON, Jan. 31 — Last year’s total flight delays — more than 450,000 — are an all-time record, the Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday. Last year’s total is 20 percent higher than 1999.

Brethren, I’m sure that having a flight delay can definitely be annoying, aggravating and whatever else you want to call it. But there is another kind of delay that bothers most all of us. And that is a delay in seeing things change in our lives for the better.

Psalm 4:1 “Answer me when I call to you, O my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; be merciful to me and hear my prayer.”

Psalm 5:1 “Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my sighing. Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray.”

It sounds as though the Psalmist was experiencing a “flight delay.” He was wanting God to change or improve the situation of his life and he felt as though God was delaying His answer and His help. HAVE YOU EVER FELT THAT WAY? Of course, you have. Who hasn’t?

ILL.- A little six-year-old girl was playing with her infant brother after coming home from Sunday School. She asked her mother, “When will he start talking?

Her mother said, “Babies don’t talk until they are two or three years old.” Her little girl said, “Oh yes, they do. They did in the Bible!” Her mother asked, “Who did?”

The little girl said, “Well, Job, for one. THE SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHER SAID THIS MORNING THAT HE CURSED THE DAY HE WAS BORN.”

Job really didn’t start cursing the day he was born. But Job 3:1 says that “he cursed the day of his birth.”

Some people may curse the fact they were born because of all the bad things that happen to them in life. Or they may despise some of the things that happen to them in life. And they wonder, “WHEN IS THIS SITUATION GOING TO CHANGE OR GET BETTER?”

Their flight has been delayed and they’re not happy about it. They are quite aggravated, wanting things to change. IS THAT HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT SOME THINGS? HAS YOUR FLIGHT BEEN DELAYED?

ILL.- Little Ben decided to write God a letter about certain things he didn’t like about his life. He wrote, “Dear God, I’ve been a good boy...” Suddenly, he stopped writing and decided on a different approach.