"Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord." - Psalm 27:14 (The Amplified Bible)
Waiting.
Everyone hates waiting. This is especially true in our high-speed, broadband, microwave culture. We want what we want when we want it and waiting for it is simply unacceptable.
Everyone hates waiting. This is especially true in our high-speed, broadband, microwave culture. We want what we want when we want it and waiting for it is simply unacceptable.
This is the part where I go on a lengthy rant about our nation's culture of narcissism. Obviously our society has some pretty hefty issues that are not going to be eradicated by lawyers turned politicians or politicians turned power-crazed despots-in-waiting. Believe me, I could go on for a while (and did in a previous draft of this blog post) about the ills of our current American society...
But that's not what this blog entry is about...at least, not entirely.
This is about waiting on the Lord and the importance of patience in the service of our King.
You see, what I've personally learned about God is, He is fully aware of all of society's ills. Pick any scale you want to talk about. Local, state-wide, national, international, or global...God's got a handle on every complicated detail of what is going on in the world.
The thing is, God's plans for this planet are pretty succinctly detailed for us in His Word. Just start with the creation account and work your way through to the end of the world prophecies in Revelation and we can get a really good God's-eye view of His plans for humanity. If I can summarize those plans, I'd say they are fairly huge in scope, they are brain-meltingly awesome in nature, and they are eternal.
The last thing I'd say about God's plans for us is they are in direct contradiction to our sinful human nature.
That is why God spends so much of His time working to "redeem" and "transform" us from that sinful nature into a Spirit-filled, Spirit-led one. No matter how intelligent, educated, and talented we become, we are but pale imitations to the one who created us in His own image. We cannot see what God sees. We cannot know what God knows. We cannot do what God does.
This is why a relationship with God is so imperative to our participation in His plans. We will never, and I mean NEVER, realize the full potential of our God-given talents and Divine callings as along as we are calling the shots in our lives. God's ultimate goal is for us to become 100% submitted to His Word, His Will, and His Ways for our individual lives so we can used to fulfill his plans for this planet and ultimately His kingdom "on earth as it is in heaven".
So, what does all of this have to do with waiting on God? I'm very glad you asked.
Our personal level of patience is one of several litmus tests God uses to show us where we are in our walk with Him; specifically our level of submission to Him. Patience is, by far, one of the more difficult fruits of the Holy Spirit to walk in because of our selfish human natures.
I repeat: we want. We want what we want. We want what we want when we want it. If we cannot have what we want when we want it, we tend to respond badly. This one concept is the very definition of immaturity. Every parent on the planet can testify of the frustrations inherent in the task of raising a 2 year old. There is no one more selfish on the planet that a two year old human child. No matter how much we love and adore our children, nothing pushes that devotion to its limits more than a toddler throwing a tantrum because they aren't getting their way. Just think of every child you've heard screaming in a grocery store and you know exactly how God feels when we do the same thing to Him.
Impatience is an observable proof of our spiritual and emotional immaturity. It also is what disqualifies us for any meaningful service to the King. Simply put, He cannot use us to the fullest extent of our potential so long as we are governed by our own passions and opinions. Imagine how different the Bible stories would be if the men and women God chose to use to fulfill His plans for this earth had the spiritual and emotional maturity of a two year old child?
How far would Noah have gotten in his 120 year ark-building project if he'd had the patience of a toddler? How much longer would Israel have suffered in Egyptian slavery had Moses walked away from the burning bush because he didn't want to lead Israel to their promised land? How many Jews would Goliath and the Philistines have killed had David been focused on his wants, wishes, and desires for himself instead of God's plans for him?
Waiting on God is a very difficult concept to sell in our modern American culture. Generally speaking, our culture is based on our feelings. We are taught from birth to 'follow our hearts' and 'do what makes us happy'. Even our nation's carefully worded founding documents declares we all have been "endowed by [our] Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."
The American dream is the pursuit of whatever makes us happy. Concepts like 'freedom', 'liberty' and 'rights' have been transformed over the generations from ideas designed to free humanity from governmental tyranny into the rhetoric of narcissists. We proudly beat our chests and proclaim ourselves free to say what we feel is right, have sex with whomever we want to have sex with whenever we feel like it, and basically do anything and everything that will bring us pleasure, purpose, and personal satisfaction to the fullest extent of the law (and then some).
Then God comes along and says to this American dream, "I want you to submit to Me. I want you to exchange your dreams, goals, and plans for your life for MY dreams, goals, and plans for your life." It should be fairly obvious this concept is in total contradiction to the thought processes of most red-blooded, flag-waving Americans.
Is it any wonder why American Christianity has digressed into a materialistic message focused on health, wealth, and happiness, generally speaking? Does the popularity and growth of the so-called 'prosperity gospel' surprise anyone living in 21st century America? Transforming God into our personal concierge who is just waiting for us to 'speak into existence' our every want, wish, and desire couldn't be a more American theology if had been birthed by George Washington and preached by Benjamin Franklin.
There is a rude awakening awaiting most of God's people. The truth of God's word is much more blunt than most church attendees want to believe. The facts about our Potter's perfecting process have little to do with our personal pursuits of pleasure and everything to do with elevating Christ to His rightful place as King of kings and Lord of lords in our everyday lives. The gospel of Jesus Christ isn't just about saving lost humanity from eternal damnation, it is also about transforming redeemed humanity into God-led, Christ-centered, Spirit-filled members of the Kingdom of God who are "meet for the master's use".
A major component of that transformation is the presence of patience in the face of life's trials, tribulations, and tragedies.
Patience is not based on feeling. I confess, I still get frustrated when life does not play out it my favor. But patience is not the absence of frustration when we're forced to wait for God to move in response to our prayers. Patience is the choice we make to submit to God's will for us. God's timelines are not ours. His desires for us are not the same as ours. His plans for us are certainly not the same as ours. The choice before us is to either submit to His plan, His desires, and His timeline for us or to reject all of that in favor of our own.
Choosing to go our own way means we are depending on our own abilities and knowledge to meet every challenge and handle every situation that will come upon us; good or ill. When we go our own way, God is relegated to pedestrian observer rather than the source of our strength. Choosing our own path for ourselves restricts God to a very limited role in our lives; not by His choice but by ours. In this reality, patience becomes a virtually unattainable virtue. It becomes an ethereal concept that seems just out of reach. We all claim to want more of it but few of us actually do what is necessary to attain it.
So, how does one get more patience?
Oh, I am so glad you asked that...
To Be Continued
But that's not what this blog entry is about...at least, not entirely.
This is about waiting on the Lord and the importance of patience in the service of our King.
You see, what I've personally learned about God is, He is fully aware of all of society's ills. Pick any scale you want to talk about. Local, state-wide, national, international, or global...God's got a handle on every complicated detail of what is going on in the world.
The thing is, God's plans for this planet are pretty succinctly detailed for us in His Word. Just start with the creation account and work your way through to the end of the world prophecies in Revelation and we can get a really good God's-eye view of His plans for humanity. If I can summarize those plans, I'd say they are fairly huge in scope, they are brain-meltingly awesome in nature, and they are eternal.
The last thing I'd say about God's plans for us is they are in direct contradiction to our sinful human nature.
That is why God spends so much of His time working to "redeem" and "transform" us from that sinful nature into a Spirit-filled, Spirit-led one. No matter how intelligent, educated, and talented we become, we are but pale imitations to the one who created us in His own image. We cannot see what God sees. We cannot know what God knows. We cannot do what God does.
This is why a relationship with God is so imperative to our participation in His plans. We will never, and I mean NEVER, realize the full potential of our God-given talents and Divine callings as along as we are calling the shots in our lives. God's ultimate goal is for us to become 100% submitted to His Word, His Will, and His Ways for our individual lives so we can used to fulfill his plans for this planet and ultimately His kingdom "on earth as it is in heaven".
So, what does all of this have to do with waiting on God? I'm very glad you asked.
Our personal level of patience is one of several litmus tests God uses to show us where we are in our walk with Him; specifically our level of submission to Him. Patience is, by far, one of the more difficult fruits of the Holy Spirit to walk in because of our selfish human natures.
I repeat: we want. We want what we want. We want what we want when we want it. If we cannot have what we want when we want it, we tend to respond badly. This one concept is the very definition of immaturity. Every parent on the planet can testify of the frustrations inherent in the task of raising a 2 year old. There is no one more selfish on the planet that a two year old human child. No matter how much we love and adore our children, nothing pushes that devotion to its limits more than a toddler throwing a tantrum because they aren't getting their way. Just think of every child you've heard screaming in a grocery store and you know exactly how God feels when we do the same thing to Him.
Impatience is an observable proof of our spiritual and emotional immaturity. It also is what disqualifies us for any meaningful service to the King. Simply put, He cannot use us to the fullest extent of our potential so long as we are governed by our own passions and opinions. Imagine how different the Bible stories would be if the men and women God chose to use to fulfill His plans for this earth had the spiritual and emotional maturity of a two year old child?
How far would Noah have gotten in his 120 year ark-building project if he'd had the patience of a toddler? How much longer would Israel have suffered in Egyptian slavery had Moses walked away from the burning bush because he didn't want to lead Israel to their promised land? How many Jews would Goliath and the Philistines have killed had David been focused on his wants, wishes, and desires for himself instead of God's plans for him?
Waiting on God is a very difficult concept to sell in our modern American culture. Generally speaking, our culture is based on our feelings. We are taught from birth to 'follow our hearts' and 'do what makes us happy'. Even our nation's carefully worded founding documents declares we all have been "endowed by [our] Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."
The American dream is the pursuit of whatever makes us happy. Concepts like 'freedom', 'liberty' and 'rights' have been transformed over the generations from ideas designed to free humanity from governmental tyranny into the rhetoric of narcissists. We proudly beat our chests and proclaim ourselves free to say what we feel is right, have sex with whomever we want to have sex with whenever we feel like it, and basically do anything and everything that will bring us pleasure, purpose, and personal satisfaction to the fullest extent of the law (and then some).
Then God comes along and says to this American dream, "I want you to submit to Me. I want you to exchange your dreams, goals, and plans for your life for MY dreams, goals, and plans for your life." It should be fairly obvious this concept is in total contradiction to the thought processes of most red-blooded, flag-waving Americans.
Is it any wonder why American Christianity has digressed into a materialistic message focused on health, wealth, and happiness, generally speaking? Does the popularity and growth of the so-called 'prosperity gospel' surprise anyone living in 21st century America? Transforming God into our personal concierge who is just waiting for us to 'speak into existence' our every want, wish, and desire couldn't be a more American theology if had been birthed by George Washington and preached by Benjamin Franklin.
There is a rude awakening awaiting most of God's people. The truth of God's word is much more blunt than most church attendees want to believe. The facts about our Potter's perfecting process have little to do with our personal pursuits of pleasure and everything to do with elevating Christ to His rightful place as King of kings and Lord of lords in our everyday lives. The gospel of Jesus Christ isn't just about saving lost humanity from eternal damnation, it is also about transforming redeemed humanity into God-led, Christ-centered, Spirit-filled members of the Kingdom of God who are "meet for the master's use".
A major component of that transformation is the presence of patience in the face of life's trials, tribulations, and tragedies.
Patience is not based on feeling. I confess, I still get frustrated when life does not play out it my favor. But patience is not the absence of frustration when we're forced to wait for God to move in response to our prayers. Patience is the choice we make to submit to God's will for us. God's timelines are not ours. His desires for us are not the same as ours. His plans for us are certainly not the same as ours. The choice before us is to either submit to His plan, His desires, and His timeline for us or to reject all of that in favor of our own.
Choosing to go our own way means we are depending on our own abilities and knowledge to meet every challenge and handle every situation that will come upon us; good or ill. When we go our own way, God is relegated to pedestrian observer rather than the source of our strength. Choosing our own path for ourselves restricts God to a very limited role in our lives; not by His choice but by ours. In this reality, patience becomes a virtually unattainable virtue. It becomes an ethereal concept that seems just out of reach. We all claim to want more of it but few of us actually do what is necessary to attain it.
So, how does one get more patience?
Oh, I am so glad you asked that...
To Be Continued
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