In this hurry-up world, fast-paced technologies, waiting for anything can cause us to lose our temper, our patience and our good sense—more frequently than we care to admit! No one enjoys waiting in line. We don’t like waiting at stoplights. We don’t like waiting for dinner. We don’t even like waiting for good things. We want what we want right now.
The Word of God precisely insists that we learn some of life’s greatest lessons while we wait. Waiting rooms can be hard classrooms, but God promises vast rewards to those who wait for Him. God plans to use the long pauses in our lives for our blessing . . . We have no choice as believers of Jesus to let Him take charge... let Him, and let us make our waiting moments as pausing for the blessings!
7- “Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains.
8- You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.
9- Don’t grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!
10- Brothers and sisters, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.
11- As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.”(James 5NIV)
I- BE PATIENT: v.7
1. DISCOVER God’s will.
“The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the person who seeks Him” (Lam. 3:25). God does not allow delays in giving us the desire of our heart to lead us along. Rather, we know that even as we wait, He is working all things together for our good and His glory (Rom. 8:28). Yet, as we eagerly anticipate His provision, we must keep our eyes on Him—listening for His voice and direction. In that way, we learn to do His will and our relationship with Him grows deeper.
2. DRAWS supernatural energy and strength.
God invites us to claim His promise in Isaiah 40:29–31: “He gives strength to the weary, and to him who lacks might He increases power. Though youths grow weary and tired, and vigorous young men stumble badly, yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary.”
Just as God deepens our relationship with Him through times of waiting, He also increases our energy, faith, endurance, and strength. We grow in the likeness of Christ and all of His attributes—including in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Gal. 5:22, 23). Surely, waiting on Him is never wasted time!
3. DEFEATS Enemies:
Wait for the Lord, and He will save you” (Prov. 20:22). How wonderful to see the Lord rescue us and bless us with His favor. When we do things our way, in our own hurried time, we end up defeated. But when we wait on God and obey His commands, He ensures our victory and keeps us from foolish and precipitous acts.
Waiting and developing patience is one of great qualities of a maturing believer of Jesus. Let us start now and listen to the great pastor...
“Don’t waste your time waiting and longing for large opportunities which may never come. But faithfully handle the little things that are always claiming your attention.”—Dr.F.B.Meyer
We must learn to wait because we are not writing our own personal and ministerial stories. Life does not work the way we want it to, in the time we want it to. You and I do not live in the center of the universe. That place is forever occupied by God and God alone. “That in the fullness of time, God sent forth His Son....” Our individual stories and the stories of our churches are part of the great ancestry-to-destiny story that He alone Authors. Waiting becomes immediately easier when we realize God is sovereign (and we are not) and when we further reflect on the reality that He is the penultimate Source of everything that is wise, loving, and good.
Waiting, therefore, is not a sign that our world is out of control. Rather, it is a sign that our world is under the wise and infinitely attentive control of a God of fathomless wisdom and boundless love. This means we can rest as you wait, not because we like to wait, but because we trust the One who is calling us to wait!
II- BE PERSISTENT: v.8 “stand firm”
For me, patience is standing persistently on the Word of God as promised. It is like Peter who walked on the sea upon the command of Jesus to “come”. Actually for me, it is as if Peter is no longer standing on water but standing on the Word “COME” of our Lord... Peter had a solid rock word on his feet. That is, until he saw the wind. Can you imagine he can see the wind? So it is with being persistently waiting. Until the Word of God be a rock solid foundation on our feet as we stand on His Word!
Isaiah spoke of the God “who acts in behalf of the one who waits for Him” (Is. 64:4). What a wonderful promise! While we firmly wait, He actively works. Think also of this: every single day, we have the greatest Mediator working on our behalf. Even when things seems to go wrong, He is making sure that everything works according to His purpose.
Although waiting can be one of the more difficult things in the Christian life, it is not wasted time. And all we have to do is stand firm on His promise. Other words used is persevere. God gives us instructions through periods of actively waiting. He may change our circumstances while we wait. He keeps us in step with Himself and prepares us for His answers. He uses the time to sift our motives and strengthen and steadfastly on our faith. And when we choose to wait, God rewards us with blessings both large and unexpected. Think of waiting persistently and courageously on God as something like planting a garden. You put a seed under the soil and water it. And then you wait.
And wait.
Then wait.
And wait.....
“Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life.”—Proverbs 4:13
Charles Spurgeon on Faith: “If our faith be worth anything, it will stand the test. Gilt is afraid of fire, but gold is not: the paste gem dreads to be touched by the diamond, but the true jewel fears no test. It is a poor faith which can only trust God when friends are true, the body full of health, and the business profitable; but that is true faith which holds by the Lord’s faithfulness when friends are gone, when the body is sick, when spirits are depressed, and the light of our Father’s countenance is hidden.” PERSISTENTLY STEADFAST IS THE KEY TO PATIENCE WHILE WAITING.
III- BE PRAISERS:
“Don’t grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!” v9
“Patience is a virtue.” We're all familiar with that cliché, and many of us know that patience is listed by Paul in Galatians 5:22-23 as among the fruit of the Spirit. So there's no disputing that the Christian ought to be patient. Patience is waiting without complaining.
Waiting on God has got to be the most exciting thing. Of course there'll be times of discouragement, disappointment, but waiting on God is good. Let us mature and eliminate grumbling and be praisers. Let us have this song of David in Psalm 40:1 “I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined unto me, and heard my cry.
2- He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.
3- And He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.
4- Blessed is that man that maketh the Lord his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.
5- Many, O Lord my God, are Thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and Thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered!”(KJV). This almost sounds selfish or self-serving, but when we understand how good and right it is for the creature to praise the Creator, the redeemed to praise the Redeemer, the delivered to praise the Deliverer, then it makes sense. We are grateful that God gives us the ability to praise Him. It is also possible that this Psalm was the new song God put into David’s mouth. “The suffering (waiting, persistently, patiently) servant of God always becomes the singing one. For as the secret of song is ever that of waiting for God, doing the will of God, in and through suffering, the result is always deliverance, and the issue a song.” (Morgan)
We know that "it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him." (Hebrews 11:6) Simply put, when we wait on God, we are assured to receive something.
CONCLUSION:
Think of a time in our life when we were “in the waiting room.”
For an appointment. To a Doctor. To a Business Associate. To your sweetheart or love ones. To a Boss. To God!
What have we learned since that experience?
Maybe we’re in the waiting room right now. I am sure we’ve been there so many times in the past. One season of waiting for the Lord to bring relief and fulfillment lasted more than twenty five for Abraham. Thirteen years for Joseph. And Caleb? God faithfully kept His word to give the land to Caleb, but He also gave him an added blessing that had not been promised. He kept age from ravaging his body. Caleb watched the flesh of the rest of the men in the camp wear out while he remained strong. He escaped the aching decay of age and stood at eighty-five as strong and vigorous as he had been at forty. And how much sweeter the taking of that land must have been for him after 45 years! God always keeps His word, beloved. Always. I thought We were all be going to die from waiting and We began to doubt that God don’t even remember us anymore. But, He did. He intervened and rescued us and We’ll never be the same again. In our waiting room, we are believing that He is and will continue to do mighty things in your life? This won’t last forever.
Be patient.
Be persistent and put a song in your heart.
Be praisers!
“I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.”Psalm 27:13-14
Psalm 40:1 “I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined unto me, and heard my cry.
2- He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.
3- And He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.
4- Blessed is that man that maketh the Lord his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.
5- Many, O Lord my God, are Thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and Thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered!”(KJV).
God bless us all!
God will do mighty things in your life, and He will continue to do them, if you trust Him.
finished: 0113pm22february2019friday
for: powernight@powerHouse!
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