WAITING

Why is it so hard to wait?

In this world that tells you to hurry up, waiting for anything can cause us to lose our temper,our good sense, and our tongues more times than we care to admit. Do you ever do that.? Who enjoys waiting in line? What about waiting at a stop light? We don't like waiting for dinner. We don't even like waiting for good things-like for fish to bite, right William. Our human nature is We want what we want now.

This brings up a whole list of questions concerning waiting on God. God has never been late (or early).

He certainly has the power to change our circumstances. That's not the problem. The problem is waiting when we want to move forward, and I know I’m not the only one who feels that way.

Perhaps we misunderstand what waiting is all about.

Waiting is not passive. It is an activity. It is a quiet, active stillness. Waiting is a directed, purposeful expectancy. It

is a definite directing of our attention toward God, waiting for His intervention in our circumstances.

One way we will know His instruction is through His Word. I know You've had

the experience, as I have, of reading a Scripture and knowing that it seems to be talking about you. You just know that verse or promise is for you. Although

I am aware that there is a tendency of some to take Scripture out of context

to make it fit their particular need, those who earnestly seek God's leading

will be tuned to the prompting of the Holy Spirit. Scripture was not made for us to prove our point but to speak God’s truth to our spirits.

Two signposts of Faith

Another way we will know God's instructions is through the changing of

our circumstances, You know the Holy Spirit will give discernment to know this

because not all change in circumstances is instruction from the Lord. Some-

times we are so close to the experience that we want to believe God has

ordered the change that has occurred in our lives-particularly if the change is for the better.

there has been so many times in my life that I jumped on something because I thought that God was telling me to do it. But we are to listen to what the Spirit says to us through God's Word and the counsel of godly friends.

God is rich in mercy. He always has a specific reason for telling us to

wait. Our responsibility is to trust Him, and that is perhaps the root cause

behind our decisions to jump ahead in disobedience. What arrogance, to

think we can work out things better than God can.

The writer of the passage said to wait and he said it twice in

one verse. He probably repeated himself because he knew no one likes to

do it. If you've ever wondered whether it is always wise to wait, a closer

look at this subject will answer your questions.

A closer look

It is always wise to wait on God.

First, it is wise to wait because God gives clear direction only when we

are willing to wait.

Remember, we don't operate like the world operates.

We live in the now generation. Instant gratification of need defines today society.

But we, as believers, live differently. We belong to a different family. We

Iive in light, not darkness. We don't take our cues from the world. We take them from (who)God.

God will give clear direction, whether it is guidance for making a move

or changing a career or choosing a mate. However, much to the distress of

many, He seldom does it quickly. We must wait until He is ready to give

direction. The world will think we are very foolish. you’ve heard the saying "Take the bull by the

horns" . Or "What are you waiting for? Looks to me like you're

wasting time and just sitting around!" That kind of shame has prompted

many a well-meaníng believer to make rash decisions. Satan uses that tactic

to take our eyes off God's direction and cause us to jump ahead of Him.

Turn to Pslams 32:8 [yellow]

PSLAMS 32:8

God says, "I will instruct yOu and teach you in the way you should go: I will guide you with My eye"

We must wait until He is ready to give counsel to us, no one said it will be easy

I have struggled at times in my life with waiting. I have learned that the

longer He takes to give direction, the more He has to teach me about what I ‘m asking for, and there are still times I rush that answer.

you can't step in front of God and not get in trouble. When He says,

"Go 3 steps," don't go 4.

Once you've made it through and His direction has become evident, you

can usually look back on those struggles as times He was able to teach you

most effectively.

IT’S WISE TO WAIT

Second, it is wise to wait because God uses that waiting time to get us in

step with His timing. I have come to recognize the importance of being in

step with God's timing. I will have a sense of peace. When I run ahead of

Him, I have no sense of calm. Instead of peace, I will constantly be trying

to figure out how to make my decision work. If you are in His timing, you

won't have to worry about making it work. God wouldn't have you do

something if He hadn't already figured out how to see you through.

Delayed timing, from our perspective, is perfect timing from God's point

of view. You know Most of the time, our decisions affect others' lives. In His timing,

He perfectly meshes it all together. When the poet said, “No man is an

island," he was affirming the truth of how one life affects another.

What we decide to do affects another person, being in God's will is MORE

important because we have more than our lives at stake.

Third, it is always wise to wait because God uses the time of waiting to

prepare us for the answer. For instance, God may say to a young man,

"Yes, you may marry her- but you need to wait." Wait? Why? Sometimes

God does the same thing in business deals or purchases: "Yes, this is My

plan for you but you need to wait." It is so unnatural to wait. But the wise

person does what is best, not what feels good at the moment.

As earthly parents, we don't give our children everything they ask for.

Sometimes we know that the timing isn't right. Just think How much more our heavenly father knows for his children.

Someone told me one time that after there child had grew up they had supper together and at supper one night he

said, "I want to thank you for not giving us everything we wanted because

most of my friends got everything they wanted and it messed them up." let me just tell you something I CAN’T WAIT TO HEAR THAT.

Fourth, it is always wise to wait because waiting strengthens our faith.

We might want to say, *Okay, God. I've learned as much faith as I care to.

You can act now. Have you ever said something similar to that? When we realize that God is more interested in our

character than in our comfort, waiting is a lot easier.

Fifth, it is always wise to wait because God gets our attention and see’s

our motives, While waiting and praying for the promotion at work, we have

time to think through our motives. Why do we really want that promotion?

Do we want it to get more money or so others will think we are powerful?

Could it be we want the promotion so we have a greater platform to serve

the Lord? If we allow God to sift through our motives, the truth will

surface good or bad.

It is amazing what we learn about ourselves through this waiting period,

So it is wise to wait because,

1. He gives clear direction

2. He gets us in step with Him.

3. He prepares us for what He has in store for us.

4. He strengthens our Faith

5. He gets our attention and sifts through our motives

If it is wise to wait, how do we do it? We do it actively. We wait where

we are, doing what God says to do, until God intervenes or tells us to do

something different. It is probably not a good idea to quit your job until

God has led you to another one. Most of the time He is not going to say,

"Do nothing and shut down your life until further notice."

In a survey in 1994 the Discipleship journal, polled and 77 percent of people said that God had assisted them in making a decision in their lives.

Can you imagine what that number would be today??

Wait Patiently

Not only do we wait actively, but we wait patiently: let’s see what (Ps. 37:7) says [pink]

We must be willing to endure until He works. We all know this is much easier said than done. But waiting patiently will be easier when we're resting in Him.

We wait actively, patiently, and silently.

One of the best verses thwt talks about waiting is Pslams 62.1 which says ,

truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation

Remember Saul's amazing conversion on the Damascus Road?

Wouldn't the natural tendency be for him to want to get to Jerusalem and the city square as fast as he could and

give his dynamic testimony? After all, he had quite a reputation for having

earlier persecuted the churches. Instead of going to Jerusalem, Paul went to

the Arabian desert. He was alone with God.

We wait actively, patiently, silently, and expectantly. This is a period of

time in which we sharpen our discernment and learn to look for evidences

of God's working. We live in anticipation of what God is going to do.

We wait courageously because we are standing on the Word of God:

Turn over to (Ps. 130:5). [blue]

When I say we wait courageously, I don't mean the absence of fear. We

have a calmness and stability in the midst of fear, an inner sense of leaning

on the arms of a perfect heavenly Father. We wait courageously, claiming

the promises from His Word that He loves us and will do what's best for

us. Just because He doesn't work as quickly as we think He should is no

proof of His indifference to our needs,

Romans 8:28-29 contains promises.

Lets look at those verses [orange]

What are the consequences of not waiting?

When we fail to wait, we get out of God's will, Even if we do the right

thing at the wrong time, it is disobedience. Running ahead of God is not

obedience, When we fail to wait, we not only get out of God's will but also

delay God's planned blessing in our lives.

According to a survey those who exhibit the greatest likelihood to wait for God's reply during their times of prayer are senior citizens (60 percent) and evangelicals (69 percent).

Failing to wait also brings confusion in our lives. We feel no sense of

direction because we are going so fast, we don't take time to reflect

on where we are headed. We speed through important intersections in our

lives and refuse any four-way stops. This is especially disastrous because

some decisions--such as the choice of a mate are lifetime decisions.

Some of life's greatest lessons are learned while we wait. Some of life's

hardest classrooms are waiting rooms. But there are vast rewards in waiting.

God graciously uses the long pauses in our lives if we let Him.

SIX REWARDS OF WAITING

Let's look at six rewards of waiting.

First, when we wait, we discover God's will and purpose in whatever

we're concerned about: Laminations 3:25 says "The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, to

the soul who seeks Him" (Lam. 3:25). God is not stringing us out to

tantalize us. He is not saying, like earthly parents, "Well, we'll see." No.

He is working all things together for our good and His glory as Romans

8:28 assures us constantly.

Second, when we wait, we receive supenatural physical energy and strength. The promise in Isaiah 40:29–31 says “He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”

Third, when we wait, we win battles: (Ps. 147:11

Psalm 147:11 KJV (WS)

The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy.

How wonderful to have the Lord favor us and to be on our side! Most of the time we're defeated because we do it our way, in our hurried time. Contrary to what it might look like on the surface, waiting will ensure our victory if God has led us to wait rather than quickly act.

SIX REWARDS OF WAITING

Fourth, when we wait, we receive answers to our prayers: "I waited patiently for the LORD; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry" (Ps. 40:1). One reason we don't see more answers to prayer is that we want the answers on our schedule and not His. We have become such an indulgent society that thinks it's unfair to put off personal gratification: God knows the perfect timing, we just have to trust him.

Fifth, when we wait, we see the fulfillment of our faith: "They shall not be ashamed who wait for Me" (Isa. 49:23). I know that during the long wait, it is easy to say, "But, Lord, suppose it doesn't work out?" But I want you to Remember something He will not let us down.

Sixth, when we wait, we see God working in our behalf. Isaiah spoke of the God "who acts for the one who waits for Him" (Isa. 64:4). Isn't that a wonderful promise? While we actively wait, He actively works. Think of this: every single day we have the greatest Mediator working on our behalf when things go wrong or when they go right. Think about that!

I want ya’ll to watch this clip from the movie castaway, where he is standing at the crossroads.

Play Film Clip !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This scene is so powerful. We never really see the crossroads we take in life but here is he is consciously aware of what ever path he takes next will change his life from that moment on.

WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND WHY GOD ASKS US TO WAIT!

We need to transform our way of thinking about waiting, and the only way we can do that is to understand why God asks us to wait.

God gives instructions through times of actively watching. 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 strengthens our faith. He wants us to wait patiently, silently, expectantly, and courageously trusting His Word.

When we choose to wait, He rewards us by allowing us to discover His Will and renews us with physical energy. He enables us to win battles and receive answers to prayer. He fulfills our faith while working on our behalf. The question comes: With all the advantages of waiting, why do we rush ahead as if we don't have a trustworthy Father? God will amaze us at what He is doing while we are expect His surprises.

APPLICATION

When we plant a garden, we put seed under the soil. Then we water. Then we wait, and wait. After the sun and rain hits the ground, the seeds begin to grow. And we finally see evidence of what we planted. Suppose we had gotten impatient and dug up our seeds because nothing was happening? We would have ruined the garden. But that is exactly the way we live our lives.

God sends sunshine and rain, and yet we don't want to wait to see what He is growing in our lives. We get impatient and want to dig up what what we are waiting for.

In the process, we ruin the fruit that He is working on in our lives. Some fruit takes a long time to mature. The One who wants to bring it forth in our lives knOws exactly how long we need to wait. Waiting is not wasted time. It brings forth the most luscious fruit of all. And that is Personal Growth...

Wait Patiently for God to move!

Charles Spurgeon said : My case is urgent, and I do not see how I am to be delivered; but this is no business of mine. He who makes the promise will find ways and means of keeping it. It is mine to obey His command; it is not mine to direct His counsels. I am His servant, not His solicitor. I call upon Him, and He will deliver.

Will you step back and wait patiently and let God give you an answer in his time? LET’S PRAY!!!!!