Pastor Alex’s sermon on Sunday was so practical. Who among us does not hate waiting? Long ago, I came across a book by Dr. Rick Yohn called God’s Waiting Room. He contends that all believers are either waiting to enter God’s Waiting room, are in God’s Waiting room or have just exited God’s Waiting room. I have found this to be so true in my life and I see it as true in the characters God has given us in scripture to study. No one escapes waiting on God! Pastor Alex gave us multiple reasons and examples of why he struggles with God’s Waiting room. As I listened, I too identified with this struggle. Why does God use a waiting room style? We are all impatient and patience is a virtue God desires to grow in our character. There is no other way to obtain patience other than through waiting.
One of the things one learns in the Christian walk is that even though we are having to wait, God is not inactive. He may be silent but not inactive. Through life’s experiences we see firsthand that while God has us waiting for something to happen, He is at work. Years ago we were waiting for a child and fully believed God that He had a child for us. We were active and put our papers into an adoption agencies both foreign and domestic. Then we waited! As we prayed for a child, we tried not to lose hope that God had a child for us. We needed to be patient as the child He had chosen for us was not yet born. In His perfect time, our Elizabeth was born and assigned to us. Shortly we were holding her in our arms, all the waiting was forgotten. And yet, not forgotten as we learned that God is faithful and will bring what He has for us to us in His time not ours. The more times you go through things like this, your trust in God grows and matures. He is changing our character as we trust in Him. James 1:2-4 explains this, Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
Each test or trial that requires waiting brings us closer to Him and shows us over and over that choosing obedience and trust is the answer. Here are a few Biblical characters that faced waiting and chose obedience and trust to receive God’s blessings. In Genesis 12 Abraham was promised by God that He would father to a great nation. After many years, childless Sarah and Abraham took matters into their own hands to solve this problem by using her maid servant to father a child. This was an acceptable practice in those days but not God’s way. He intended for then to have a child of their own. When both of them were up in age, God sent messengers to tell them this time next year they would have a child, Genesis 18. Sarah laughed as she was beyond child bearing age. However, God had other things in mind as her revitalized Sarah and the following year she gave birth to their son Isaac. They learned a valuable lesson about waiting upon God. God desires us to trust Him, no matter how it looks on the outside, for His will to be done in our lives. Waiting in faith shows you are choosing obedience and hope over trying to take control of things yourself.
I also love the story of King Hezekiah in 2 Kings 18:13 “ In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them.” They were under siege and Sennacherib sent a letter demanding their surrender and stated they would be defeated. He claimed they were lost as they had trusted in God who had let them down. He wanted to demoralize the people and get them to abandon all hope. Hezekiah, took the letter from Sennacherib and laid it before God, 2 Kings 19:14-19 “Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it; and Hezekiah went up to the house of the Lord and spread it before the Lord. 15 And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord and said: “O Lord, the God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God, you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; you have made heaven and earth. 16 Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see; and hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to mock the living God. 17 Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands 18 and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone. Therefore they were destroyed. 19 So now, O Lord our God, save us, please, from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O Lord, are God alone.” Hezekiah trusted God and waited for the Lord to work. The result from 2 Kings 19:35-36 “ And that night the angel of the Lord went out and struck down 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. And when people arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies. 36 Then Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went home and lived at Nineveh.” God had a plan of victory and Hezekiah was blessed because he obediently waited.
God keeps His promises and even though waiting is difficult God will bring you through victoriously. Several scriptures to remember in regard to God’s timing. 2 Peter 3:8 “But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. Ecclesiastes 3:11 “He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” Romans 12:12 “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. God rewards patience-TRUST HIM!
Linda
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LINDA'S BLOG
Our Sunday service is online and in-person at 11:00am.
Come visit us at 5353 Concord Blvd, on the corner of Concord Blvd and Kirker Pass
Watch on Youtube
LINDA'S BLOG
Linda is a member of Crossroads church and regularly blogs about her faith.
Fearless Living
Fearless Living
CROSSROADS CHURCH
Discovering God is a fresh look at how God is moving in our lives. Rooted in the Crossroads Church community, we reflect on sermons, share stories, and explore everyday moments where God invites us to grow. Join us as we take steps toward Him together. Learn more at www.wearecrossroads.church.
Discovering God is a fresh look at how God is moving in our lives. Rooted in the Crossroads Church community, we reflect on sermons, share stories, and explore everyday moments where God invites us to grow. Join us as we take steps toward Him together. Learn more at www.wearecrossroads.church.
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