The Waiting Game:
How To Make the Most of the In Between Times
Acts 1:12-26
Do you ever feel like most of your life is spent waiting around?
Christian Rapper KJ 52 asks what is on all our minds in his song, “Why:”
Why do I have to wait in line just to wait in another line
And when I think I’m done I gots to do it one more time?
Why oh why am I always stuck behind
The lady who has writes a check in the express check out line?
Excuse me miss, it’s 10 items not 99.
We experienced waiting around just this week, when Daddy took Maya to the Dr.’s office.
There are so many things we look forward to, but it seems like a lot of our time is eaten up just waiting:
One Family Decided to turn “down time” or “waiting time” to their advantage. (the following stories are from a Family Fun website, but I didn’t log the address)
"We began to realize the heart of family life is really what happens in between the plans," says Carolyn. She and her husband, Lee, also a science teacher, began thinking about how they could make these between-time moments add up:
• Could they make long car drives as pleasant as arriving somewhere?
• Could visits to the grocery be turned into family field trips?
• The answer is yes.
The Derrs work to make their kids part of the experience rather than bored bystanders. When the girls go to the grocery store, Carolyn now hands them plastic bags filled with pictures of milk and cereal labels and other staples they need. The girls track down the items on their "lists."
• What was a chore has become a scavenger hunt. "We have a ball," says Carolyn.
Another favorite device is the prop bag or "treasure pack." Available only when the family is out of the house, the packs are sewn of fabric selected by the girls. Its contents are simple and versatile—
• dried beans,
• a magnifying glass,
• play dough,
• a marble--and Carolyn varies them weekly. "The girls ask for them when we’re stuck somewhere," says Carolyn. "We use them to avoid meltdown and create fun. They work."
My personal favorite is the Donau family:
When a large bug hits the windshield on Lisa Donau’s car, she often pulls over. For Lisa, and her two children, it’s an opportunity to learn something new. She scrapes the flattened bug into a bag and hands it to Gunnar, along with the bug book and hand lens she carries for such occasions. "I like to pursue any subject that interests the kids," she says. "The car is a great way for us to see the world."
Lisa budgets extra time for almost every drive so the family can feel free to chase down bugs or
Could it be true that the heart of life is what happens during the In Between Times?
It seems to bear out in a lot that we do:
• A successful meal is determined by how/if we keep our fridge stocked and even how we prepare the ingredients
• Graduating from school depends on showing up regularly, and keeping up with assignments
• Successfully completing a YMCA triathlon depends on eating less twinkies, more carrots, and exercising a day or two before hand
I popped in as several women were cleaning up after a shower for Heather yesterday. (By the way, wouldn’t you agree with my wife that she looks cute pregnant?)
Getting all excited about the new baby: what will become of her?
• What will she look like? (hopefully more like mom than dad)
• Will she make enough to support me in my old age?
• What are her talents going to be?
• How will she do in school?
Both of our families (and Johnstons) got to enjoy our children sing their little hearts out at Triumph Academy’s elementary school musical: Dr. Seussical Jr. (or something)
• Children of all shapes and sizes
• Some were made to shine under the spotlight: seizing the opportunity
• Others were quite conflicted and would rather have been hiding under a table (the girl who said “no no no!!!!” when the director asked if they should perform the last number again. And when they did, she got very visible upset and shaken and cried and missed her hand actions
All the parents were looking on, enjoying, laughing, cringing, coaxing, waving, and egging their children on.
Most of us know this is just the beginning of their lives, and what happens now, in the in-between times will determine how they finish at the end of their time.
What is true of our children is true of all people. Our “success” (whatever that may mean) is often determined by what we do in the In Between Times.
We see that in the Bible, as well.
ACTS 1:12-26
You might recall that last week, Jesus had given his disciples (men and women, Apostles and “normal folk”) the mission of being his witnesses to the ends of the earth!
He was asking them to be History Makers!
• History Makers that affected the whole world
• History Makers that were noteworthy to God
• History Makers where the smallest act in the name of Christ was more important than making Guiness Book of Records or Time “man of the Year.”
• History Makers who actions would ring out through all of eternity, and not just make the “hot or not” list at the end of the year
HISTORY MAKERS!!!
But he had told them to . . . wait.
In an IN BETWEEN time.
In between the ascension and the second coming
They stood there gawking up into heaven. “what do we do NOW?”
Between the Holy Mission and the Holy Spirit
Between the Mandate and the Means.
Jesus had told them to wait. You’re going to be HISTORY MAKERS.
But wait. I will give you Power when the Holy Spirit comes on you—and THEN you will be my witnesses to the ends of the earth.
Acts 2:12-26 show us how they handled the In Between Times.
We can learn from them, for more important than
• Good grades
• After school activities
• Business Networking
• Public Recognition
• Family Status
• The right social connections
More important than all these things,
Big Idea: History Makers Keep Centered on God in the In Between Times
Or, What We Do During the In Between Times Will Determine Our Success at the End of Time
Nothing matters more in life than are we connected with God, saved by his grace, and serving him with our whole hearts. Nothing.
If raising our children to love and serve God isn’t more important than any other pursuit in life, we run the risk of raising them to be
History Breakers
Instead of
History Makers
They will be broken at the end of history instead of spoken for by the God of history.
And what applies to them also applies to us: our pursuits in the in between times will determine our outcome at the end of time.
Whether you are
• a sweet and honored mother on this (rainy/lovely) Mother’s Day
• A dad who hopefully remembered to honor his wife and mother
• A single person who is the son or daughter of a mother (and all of us are somehow in the above categories)
The challenge today is to commit to putting God at the center of your lives
The first way to put God at the center is
1. To Search God’s Word Diligently
During these days of waiting, Peter declares that scripture had to be fulfilled by replacing Judas with another man designated as an Apostle. One who had been with the Lord from his baptism all the way up to his ascension. And so they choose Matthias.
During this in between time, they could have said “let’s just wait.” Or, “This is a good time to go down to ‘Burger Herod’s’, get a BK Mutton sandwich, and hang out until Jesus sends us the power.” “Let’s get in a round of golf or two before we have to get down to business.”
Instead, he chooses to heed scripture’s call to set their leadership aright. Many people see a significance in Jesus choosing 12 apostles to correspond with the 12 tribes of Israel. These apostles had a significant duty as the foundation of the community being formed around the New Covenant—what we call the “early church.” Peter was a leader in obeying the Word he was diligently studying.
Even though he was told to wait for the Holy Spirit—which had not ever been poured out on people like it would in a few days—he also knew that Scripture was inspired by God’s Holy Spirit, and as such, needed to be obeyed. Which they did by setting their leadership aright.
When God speaks, people need to listen—and obey!
Professor Jack Reese of Abilene Christian University, in last week’s Christian Standard, wrote of how the Word of God had a prominent place in the worship of early Christians, who, according to early church father Justin Martyr, would read the Bible in public worship “for as long as time allowed.” And more time was allowed than just 3 or 4 verses, or even a chapter!
His point of the article, entitled “Coming Back to the Heart of Worship,” was that the church has neglected God’s Word as a central piece in the transformation of God’s people. Instead, he says—and he writes this as a musician who loves music “not too little, but too much . . .”—our “obsession about music may be stunting the very growth we most desire and desperately need.”
Noting that the writing of new hymns “has always followed rather than led spiritual awakening”—he asserts that it is the hearing of the Word that has sparked the renewal of God’s people.
And I might add the hearing of the Word—most especially that Word which lifts up Jesus—added to a life made alive by the Spirit of God—is what brings renewal.
My point is not to pit music vs Word, but to highlight the need for us to be in the Word, to diligently study and obey it.
If we want to be History Makers, the Word is central to our lives. It is in the Word that we find
• The transforming good news of Jesus—he changes lives!
• The wisdom of God, passed down through the centuries—to contrast the “wisdom” of the world
• A light to our path—to guide us through the darkness caused by a world filled with competing values, directives, and lifestyles.
As a child I remember the growing acceptance of the “gay pride” movement. There were whispers of “it’s okay for them” but I thought surely people will never accept that such living is good and acceptable—whether they were Christian or not. After all, I reasoned, “it just isn’t natural.”
Nowadays, though many would still not approve of homosexual living, the mantra “if it’s your thing, it is okay” has now swept the nation and into the theology of some churches.
Kurt Bruner, in “the Parent’s Guide to the Spiritual Growth of Children,” recalls the time he made a simple map to McDonald’s, and told his 7 year old child to make sure the family van took them there.
Kurt would ask where to go, and his son would say “left” or “right”. The only problem was, he never listened to his son, and they soon ended up in a dead end. Kurt “innocently” said “I guess I didn’t know where I was going”, to which his son shouted “That’s right, because you were supposed to follow the directions!!!!”
We need God’s Word.
Our children need God’s Word.
Our church is strong in God’s Word in our adult Bible studies at the church or in our homes—in fact, the Mommerency’s are just starting a home Bible study that goes through the Bible.
Our children not only participate in lesson based on the Bible, but are encouraged to memorize verses, with the hope that it will be planted in their hearts.
But adults and children alike need to be in the Word at home—even if they are exposed to the Word “at church.”
And if you—or your children are not too involved in Bible studies and children’s ministries, then you need to take even more care that the Word gets exposure at home. –so that you—and they—know when to “turn left” and when to “turn right.”
A simple strategy to make God and his Word central in your lives:
• Make sure each person has a Bible they can read—or listen too (if younger)
o So many bibles out there for all ages, no longer do you have to read to your children in Latin!
• Have regular times for the word to be read:
o Bedtime
o Mealtime
o Turn off the TV and Computer quiet time
• Start off small
o Set aside one or two times a week if you are not doing anything now
o Work up to daily reading
• Look for teachable moments to show how God’s Word helps and guides us
o Like Kurt’s driving lesson
o Explain how God’s people live differently by connecting your actions to Jesus’ teachings, or the Ten Commandments
o Model godly love for your spouse and back that up for your children with scripture like 1 Cor 13, Eph 5, or talking about the fruit of the Spirit
• Get resources that help you relate the Bible to real life
o Biographies of Christian saints
o Family Devotionals
o Christian magazines (all age levels)
o Videos, etc
Above all, make sure you not only model the centrality of the Bible, but you lead your children to discover that they, too, have responsibility to get into God’s word
2. To Seek God Daily
14 They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.
They joined constantly.
As we go through the book of Acts, we see how important prayer is in the life of the church. It is mentioned 30 times in this book alone:
• Acts 2:42: they devoted themselves to prayer
• Acts 4:31: after the church prayed, the place was shaken . . . and they were filled with the HS and spoke the word of God boldly.
• Acts 12:5 The church prayed earnestly for Peter’s release from prison
Can you imagine what it was like for the Apostles, for Mary, the mother of Jesus, for the others who knew him so well:
One minute, they are talking face to face, the next, he is gone! Anyone who has lost a loved one knows that weird and compelling drive to still communicate with the person who no longer is “with us.”
Now Jesus is gone, but
they are continue to seek him--but this time, through prayer.
Their prayers weren’t empty words.
They weren’t well crafted soliloquy’s.
They WERE more than likely heartfelt cries to their Lord and Friend
We really don’t know the content of their prayers. Quite likely they were praying for the awaited Holy Spirit. Quite likely they were praising and longing after God. Quite likely they were staying connected with the Author of their lives.
Jack Reese, whom I mentioned earlier, said the early church often would follow up the ministry of the word with that of prayer. “Once God had spoken,” he writes, “then people were prepared to respond, to lay their lives, their sins, their pain, and their desires before God”, moving them from “hearing to surrender.”
We spend last Wednesday’s Bible study talking much about prayer. Several expressed their daily walk in prayer, even if they did not set aside a specific time to pray. And yet some also expressed that having well prepared, set aside times for prayer—
• whether while on a walk through nature
• or in an intimately appointed “prayer closet”
have proved to be glorious times of communing with God, much like the early Christians we read about.
Prayer is an important part of many people in our church, and of that I am grateful. There is so much more to prayer than just asking God to “bless the meal.” Or praying prayers of desperation, because the rest of the time we are too busy, or too worried about being bored in prayer, or too unsure about the possibility that prayer really changes things.
But prayer does. And the early church experienced the power of prayer, whether alone on their roof top (like Peter) or in a united group, as they so often prayed in those days.
We too, want to magnify our opportunity and ability to call out to God, and to listen for God, and to watch for God to respond to our prayers.
We believe that our abilities as mom’s, dad’s, teachers, leaders, helpers, friends, is too limited to neglect prayer.
We believe that a solid prayer life is foundational to experiencing God mightily at work among his people.
We believe that God hears the prayers of ordinary people.
We believe that people are moved and changed in authentic prayer.
As such, our elders are directing the church to form a “Prayer Ministry Team” to encourage and enhance prayer among our church family.
This is Exciting to me
This is exciting to many others, as there have been many—as recently as this Wednesday, voicing their support and desire to be a part of such a team.
But we don’t have to wait for this team to be formalized before we experience God in prayer. Here are some tips for enhancing your prayer life:
• read Bible passages that show how people and God connected and experienced the power and privilege of prayer.
• Read historical and contemporary accounts of how prayer changed peoples lives, (Jesus Freaks, When Teens Pray, “Let Prayer Change your Life,” “Spiritual Warriors Prayer Guide”
• Here is a good one: PRAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
o Talk normal to God, be real
o Be bold in your praying
o Pray in all things: teach children especially that prayer is more than just mealtime, for emergencies, before we start or end church Bible Studies, that prayer is
An opportunity to talk to God about life
To tell God how wonderful he is
Prayer can be done any time, anywhere—walking in the park, driving down the road (don’t close your eyes.
• Celebrate When God answers prayer
• Let your children express themselves in prayer
A third way to make God central is
3. To Serve God Faithfully
We already referred to how the Apostles were obeying God’s Word by selecting another Apostle. But not to be missed is that an Apostle—and indeed all children of God—are made to serve him.
Serving God, offering up our bodies as “living sacrifices” as Romans call it, is actually our supreme act of worship.
The Bible tells us that each of us has a role—or several roles—to fulfill so that we all can act as the body of Christ.
• If we are not serving in our roles at all, it is like denying the body the use of one of its limbs or organs. It won’t function well
• If we are not serving in our correct roles—trying to be an eye when we are really a foot—we don’t function very well, and the body suffers.
o The apostles, early in the life of the church, noted that they were in danger of neglecting their real purpose—ministry of the word and prayer—by taking care of feeding the widows being neglected, so they appointed godly men to take care of it. Neither role was to be neglected, and both were important, but some people were meant for one role, others, another. Some serve as teachers, some as evangelists, others as servants who keep the church grounds clean and in ship shape, others as encouragers, and on and on.
God is honored when we serve him how He gifts us.
Jack Reese, in his article “Coming Back to the Heart of Worship” noted that after the worship time, early Christians would gather the leftover bread and wine and other gifts and make their way into the community to distribute to those in need. “the ministry of the Word led to the ministry of the table.”
As parents, not only should you be serving in your capacity—and if you aren’t, talk to a seasoned Christian or leader to help you discover where you should serve—but you should also
• Encourage your children to serve God
• Teach your children that serving God is their highest honor
o Whether they work as a garbage collector or doctor or preacher
o Don’t denigrate “full time” ministry so that your child will pursue a “real job” and be a success in life.” (recruiting experience at LCC)
o Show them—or at least connect them—with people of all walks of life who model serving God well—regardless of their occupation
The last means to make God central that we will examine today is
4. To Savor God’s Family Entirely
Notice v. 14, I like how it is stated in the ISV:
14With one mind all of them kept devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.
The Apostles, the women, Mary, the mother of Jesus—even his brothers, were all gathered together all of ONE MIND. There were about 120 of them gathered together, our text says.
They didn’t have much, but they had God, his word, prayer, and each other.
I would like us to note two things:
1. As diverse as they were: leaders, regulars, men, women, former outcasts, family members, they all came together in UNITY and PRAYER. They were called the “household” or “family” of God.
They Savored the common bond they had in their Savior!
How destructive it is when people let negativity and division infiltrate the ranks.
• “no negative downline” Network marketing mantra.—it’ll undermine your leaders and kill your business
• Similar principle applies in the church: when we gripe openly about others, ESPECIALLY in front of our children, it diminishes the honor of the brothers and sisters in Christ, and teaches your children to discount and be critical of others.
• I remember my parents saying negative things about others—and those images about those people have stuck with me to this day.
• The Bible teaches us to use speech that builds others up, and if there are issues, to deal with them first in a private, loving, and gentle manner.
Why do we disrespect each other instead of loving one another?
Why do we have to focus on the skin tone and color?
Why can’t we see that we sisters and we brothers
And understand we all equal to God and plus He loves us?
At the same time, what a wonderful opportunity for people to BELONG no matter what their background (greedy profiteers, political extremists, and lowly fisherman)
2. The early church also was made up of family members who shared an earthly family tree
a. How wonderful that Jesus’ family were not just family by last name, but also in Christ’s name.
i. Just months earlier, his brothers and even mom had struggled to accept Jesus’ claim as Messiah
ii. Here they are united together
1. James became the leader of the Jerusalem church and wrote the book by the same name
2. Tradition has it that Judas, another brother of Jesus, also became a church leader and wrote Jude
Family ties are nice, but they are only lasting if found in Christ.
Mothers, Dads, Grandparents, Friends: do everything in your power, united together with God’s power, to raise up children who love and serve God
Then they will be truly history makers.
It won’t matter
• What money they make in their careers
• What records they break in school
• What status they achieve in the community
• How fun all your family times are
IF they Don’t Have Christ!
CONCLUSION
We can’t force people to love the Lord, but we can start today to make a lasting impact by making God central in our lives—and in the lives of our children and those we have opportunity to influence
I know from personal experience that we often choose the wrong path—even if raised right. But I also know that the more we genuinely live for God, and become leaders in our own family, and model his love in our relationships, the more lasting impact is made.
My prayer is that mothers here today will be honored with honor that is due them as women who have a key role in the formation of our children.
My prayer is that God will gift you to greater influence on your children. What you do—and we do, in the in between times, the waiting times, will have a direct impact on our children and those around us.
Many are crying out, trying to make sense of life, as in this verse from :
Waiting Around To Die
Townes Van Zandt
Sometimes I don’t know where this dirty road is taking me
Sometimes I can’t even see the reason why
I guess I keep on gamblin’, lots of booze and lots of ramblin’
It’s easier than just a-waitin’ ’round to die
There is a better life than that!
And why do we have to fill up all the precious silence with small talk?
Why do we all walk with our heads down and walkmans up to ten?
Are we afraid to let a stranger in every now and then?
With God at the center of our focus and priorities, we will have the purpose and the means to live with “success” and expectancy in the inbetween times.
