He Will do it Again!
Isa. 40:31 NKJ
But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.
But teach me Lord, teach me Lord to wait!
When I read this verse, the way I take it is that it is coming from a point of need. And how if we're willing to bring our needs to the Lord and lay them at his feet. He shall refresh, renew and replace our need with His abundance of every good thing.
Thing is when we normally get to this place of tiredness, we normally feel like we have nothing left to give. By this point we normally have spent everything we have, we have exhausted all of the possibilities our understanding can comprehend.
But the thing is when you have a need and you expect God to work in your life and to answer that need. Whatever you have, in whatever state you are, you still have to give it over to God.
Mark 6:35-38 MSG.
35-36 When his disciples thought this had gone on long enough—it was now quite late in the day—they interrupted: “We are a long way out in the country, and it’s very late. Pronounce a benediction and send these folks off so they can get some supper.”
37 Jesus said, “You do it. Fix supper for them.”
They replied, “Are you serious? You want us to go spend a fortune on food for their supper?”
38 But he was quite serious. “How many loaves of bread do you have? Take an inventory.”
That didn’t take long. “Five,” they said, “plus two fish.”
Mark 8:1-5 MSG
1-3 At about this same time he again found himself with a hungry crowd on his hands. He called his disciples together and said, “This crowd is breaking my heart. They have stuck with me for three days, and now they have nothing to eat. If I send them home hungry, they’ll faint along the way—some of them have come a long distance.”
4 His disciples responded, “What do you expect us to do about it? Buy food out here in the desert?”
5 He asked, “How much bread do you have?”
Both times the expectation was enormous. Both times what did he ask for from them? Both times what did they give Him? They gave Jesus what they had, right? What did they give to Him? A leftover, right? It wasn't a freshly prepared meal, it was a left over from a meal, right?
I once read the true story of a family that was sitting down at the dinner table for their evening meal. But one of the girls wasn’t happy because they were having leftovers, and she complained about it.
The dad was not happy about that and spent a few moments explaining to her that she needed to be more thankful for what she had. In order to make sure she understood his point, he decided that she should say grace and that her prayer should show her appreciation for what she had.
So she bowed her head and then prayed:
"Thank you for this food… again."
(Heather Marshall in R.Digest, 5/03)
So many times, were reluctant to give God what we have. Because we don't think God can take what we have and make it work for what we need! (Repeat)
It's at those times we need to be thankful for what we have, all the while willing to still give what we have so God can super naturally bless it and turn it into what we need!
It's not up to us to decide what God can do, or what He needs to work with as He is meeting the needs of His Children. The most important thing to note here is that when we give Him what we have and expect in faith. He is willing to do it for us as each need arises.
The fact that He is willing to do it again, you would think would be an easily learned lesson. When we read about the disciples and the heroes of the Bible, I think sometimes we like to think we would like to be more like them. But in essence we're not all that much different and in many ways we are just like them.
ILLUS: I once read about a minister's wife who was a wonder at conserving food and she rarely threw any of it away. At one meal she gave her husband nothing but leftovers and he was obviously not enthusiastic about it. He began to pick at the food and ate a little… but had not said grace yet.
His wife smiled sweetly at him and gently said, "Dear, you forgot the blessing."
He looked over at her and said: "Sweetheart, if you can show me one item that hasn't been blessed at least two times, I can't see what another prayer can do for it."
Now keep in mind, that this is shortly after what we had read earlier.
Mark 8:13-21 MSG
13-15 He then left them, got back in the boat, and headed for the other side. But the disciples forgot to pack a lunch. Except for a single loaf of bread, there wasn’t a crumb in the boat. Jesus warned, “Be very careful. Keep a sharp eye out for the contaminating yeast of Pharisees and the followers of Herod.”
16-19 Meanwhile, the disciples were finding fault with each other because they had forgotten to bring bread. Jesus overheard and said, “Why are you fussing because you forgot bread? Don’t you see the point of all this? Don’t you get it at all? Remember the five loaves I broke for the five thousand? How many baskets of leftovers did you pick up?”
They said, “Twelve.”
20 “And the seven loaves for the four thousand—how many bags full of leftovers did you get?”
“Seven.”
21 He said, “Do you still not get it?”
They had just seen Jesus do the miraculous twice! Jesus had fed by some estimates as many as 35,000 individuals with the contents and the equivalent of two happy meals! And here it is some 10 minutes later so to speak and their worried a whole loaf of bread is not going to be enough to feed the ones who were on the boat! Did I mention that it was not a very big boat?
Let's be truthful, if were willing to admit it we are a lot like the disciples and they are a lot like us. Human nature is human nature, isn't it?
We have needs just like The disciples did. And we pray and we ask God to meet our needs and He does. And then 10 minutes later, Another situation arises and instead of having carry over, or bridge gap faith from the last miracle God provided. Just like the disciples we revert back to square one and think, how in the world are we going to solve this dilemma?
We don't have enough food to feed these people, or in our case we don't have enough resources to meet this need! And it's Groundhog Day all over again. And Jesus says, "do you still not get it?" Stop, look and listen to what you do have and then be willing to give it over to me.
We all have mountain top as well as valley experiences in life. And Jesus is right there for us in every situation willing and able to not only meet, but exceed our every need. As long as we are willing to give Him what we have to work with.
Luke 21:1-4 NKJ
21 And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, 2 and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites. 3 So He said, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; 4 for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God,[a] but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.”
What those two coins represented was everything that woman had, right? What those coins really were, were left overs! She obviously had had more, because it says those were the last two she had! Two coins when you have a hundred coins, no big deal! Two coins when you have two coins, big deal!
Sometimes, we feel like what we have is not enough for God to work with. But just like this widow woman whatever we do have is enough for God to do a miracle with. If we are just willing to let go and let God do what His Word declares what He will do!
1st Kings 17:7-16 MSG
7-9 Eventually the brook dried up because of the drought. Then God spoke to him: “Get up and go to Zarephath in Sidon and live there. I’ve instructed a woman who lives there, a widow, to feed you.”
10-11 So he got up and went to Zarephath. As he came to the entrance of the village he met a woman, a widow, gathering firewood. He asked her, “Please, would you bring me a little water in a jug? I need a drink.” As she went to get it, he called out, “And while you’re at it, would you bring me something to eat?”
12 She said, “I swear, as surely as your God lives, I don’t have so much as a biscuit. I have a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a bottle; you found me scratching together just enough firewood to make a last meal for my son and me. After we eat it, we’ll die.”
Earlier when we read about the disciples, they weren't aware of what they had around them in their surroundings, right? This woman however, she was exactly aware of what she had and what she did not have. And what she was telling him, was that she did not have food to feed him let alone feed herself or her son.
13-14 Elijah said to her, “Don’t worry about a thing. Go ahead and do what you’ve said. But first make a small biscuit for me and bring it back here. Then go ahead and make a meal from what’s left for you and your son. This is the word of the God of Israel: ‘The jar of flour will not run out and the bottle of oil will not become empty before God sends rain on the land and ends this drought.’”
15-16 And she went right off and did it, did just as Elijah asked. And it turned out as he said—daily food for her and her family. The jar of meal didn’t run out and the bottle of oil didn’t become empty: God’s promise fulfilled to the letter, exactly as Elijah had delivered it!
When I read that scripture I can't help but wonder, how long was it that the jar of meal did not run out. Because with the story of Elijah, it didn't rain for 3 1/2 years. That's how faithful God he is with his promises!
He makes possible what seems impossible, for those who are willing to give Him what they have and to trust Him and to wait upon Him to fulfill what He says He will do!
Illus. A man named Pat Barnes told of coming out of church one Sunday and encountering an old flower lady. At her feet corsages and boutonnieres were on top of a spread-open newspaper. The flower lady was smiling, her wrinkled old face alive with some inner joy. I started down the stairs - then, on impulse, turned and picked out a flower. As I put it in my lapel, I said,
"You look happy this morning."
"Why not? Everything is good."
She was dressed so shabbily and seemed so very old that her reply startled me.
"You've been sitting here for many years now, haven't you? And always smiling. You wear your troubles well."
"You can't reach my age and not have troubles…. Only it's like Jesus and Good Friday... '
She paused for a moment. "Yes?" I prompted.
"Well, when Jesus was crucified on Good Friday that was the worst day for the whole world. And when I get troubles I remember that, and then I think of what happened only three days later - Easter and our Lord arising. So when I get troubles, I've learned to wait three days ... somehow everything gets all right again."
(April 1956 in GUIDEPOSTS)
Waiting on the Lord!
That's a theme that runs throughout the Bible with Great Results!
Abraham and Sarah waited on the Lord and they gave birth to a son. And they became the father and the mother of many nations, with descendants the numbered more then the stars in the sky and the sands in the sea.
Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers. He eventually wound up in prison, but he never lost heart and waited on God. God honored is waiting and his faith. Joseph went from the prison to the palace, he became a Ruler over all of Egypt. Second only in command to the great Pharaoh.
Those are great stories and the Bible is loaded with stories just like those. Stories about real situations and real people that prevailed when they waited upon the Lord!
Events that God Helped and Allowed to happen, to strengthen and to give to all who hear and read them!
The same could be said of you today. For we all have testimonies, whether we we will admit it or not. Of the times that God stepped in and did something miraculous for each and every one of us. For their are all times each one of us have either thought or said; I don't know how it happened. But something or someone is watching and looking out for me!
And if you were to list all of those and put them in the form of the story they would be just as exciting, because God did them!
What is possible in each one of our futures? If we are willing to wait on God, it's more like what's not possible in each one of our futures! For if we are willing to wait on God with expectation, there is nothing that is out of the realm of possibility, for each and everyone of us.
What are you waiting on God for today? Know that His timing is perfect and the same way He came through for you last time you had a need. You can depend on Him and the fact that He will do it again, again and again!
Amen? Let's pray!
