I’ll Wait MRCC 8.24.2014; Park Plaza 1.11.2015 Every once in a while people get crazy ideas. People like Mylene Paquette. A Canadian rower and who decided last year she wanted to be the first North American woman to successfully row solo across the Atlantic Ocean. Meanwhile, I decided to walk an extra lap around the Eagle Trail at OC. By the way, her trip was planned for 2700 nautical miles from Halifax, Nova Scotia to Lorient, France. The only motor on board were her two oars. Mylene left in July. For a four and a half month trip. A trip that takes 6 hours on a plane. I’ve never met Mylene. But I’m guessing something about her personality. She’s good at waiting. She’s persistent. And I bet she’s a ‘better late than never’ kind of person. You’d have to be, right? Waiting isn’t something that comes natural. Like waiting on your paycheck to be deposited in your account. Or waiting when the Wi-Fi is a little slow. Or waiting on someone to return that text that you sent way back 5 minutes ago. No. To row across the Atlantic…I think you’d be pretty good at waiting. Waiting for comfort. On a breeze to blow. On a storm to stop. You give up a LOT of control to sit in a rowboat on the ocean. In late September, Mylene was hit by remnants of Hurricane Humberto. She lost her anchor. Her iPhone and her satellite phone. Other important things too. She capsized twice and was able to get flipped back over before it was too late. Can you imagine being 83 days into a trip of that magnitude and THEN getting hit by a hurricane? How small and alone you would feel ANYWAY? But when you lose your phones and access to any kind of help…you can imagine that she would feel abandoned and forgotten and that there feel like there’s no chance any help will ever show up. Maybe you’ve waited on someone before. Someone that didn’t show up. For me it happened earlier this year. The problem starts when the meeting location between people is at a neutral site. You know how it goes. You set the date and the time. And the location. So my appointment was set. We settled on a Monday afternoon at 2:30. At Starbucks. 15th and Bryant because we could visit without as many interruptions. I showed up at 2:30 and did the initial glance. You know the one. Walk in a restaurant and scan the place. When you realize, a rarity for me, that you’re the first one there, you find a table. So I did. About 2:40 I went ahead and ordered so I didn’t get kicked out for turning the coffee shop into my office. About 2:50 I wondered if something had come up but I figured I would wait and practice patience that people, have showed me when I'M late. Around 3:00 came and I felt awkward. I called and nobody answered. I waited a few more minutes and then decided to leave. I don’t know if this has ever happened to you…but it’s a lonely/strange feeling to get up from an appointment that never happened. It felt like everyone else at Starbucks was silently thinking to themselves….”Oh that poor guy. He’s got nobody.” Or “He totally got stood up…what a walk of shame he’s having on the way out to his car.” I was no-showed. And no call either. It was just me waiting. Experts say that there are 5 stages of grief. So there must at least 4 stages of getting stood up. It starts out where you are expecting things to happen just like you planned on your calendar. You’re Expectant. When expectations fade…the next stage of being stood up is Self-Doubting. I must have written it down wrong. Or maybe my friend was confused. Or just flaked out. The thoughts drift back to me and what I must’ve missed. Then the next stage…you simply feel Alone. And finally…you come back to being Expectant. I started thinking about all of this a few weeks ago at our Q Group. We have a red folder that holds all of our favorite songs because we sing every time we get together. The children pick most of the songs. This particular evening we sang an older song…one that our youth group sang when I was a kid. The lyrics are from Psalm 25 and that evening they really grabbed me. Which is amazing because it’s all King James…and that version rarely gets my attention. Psalm 25:1-3 - Let me share it... “Unto Thee O Lord, do I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in thee: let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me. Yea let none that wait on thee be ashamed…” That last part just grabbed me as we sang. We’ve sung that for years. Let none that wait on thee be ashamed. NIV says it like this – “No one who hopes in you will EVER be put to shame.” And NLT – “No one who trusts in you will ever be disgraced.” Both have a positive way of saying it. Full of expectancy. Lord, there is NO way you’ll ever let me down. I’ll never be disgraced or embarrassed. So I hope. King James seems more raw to me…Pleading with the Lord. PLEASE be here. Don’t let me embarrassed, Lord. I’ve told everyone how amazing YOU are. How you always come through in powerful ways. So Lord, you just HAVE to meet me. We have an appointment. Can you hear the desperation? Oh, God, don’t disappoint me. My relief. My future. My very life…it’s ALL in your hands! You CAN’T miss our appointment! When you want to meet with anyone (God included)…you have to be clear on some things. First you have to figure out WHEN? When will I meet with you, Lord? I don’t want to be a no-show. The writer of Lamentations (Jeremiah) says - Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.23 They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” Lamentations 3:22-24. WHEN should I plan to meet with the Lord? Every morning. That’s great news for morning people and maybe not so much for people who like to sleep a little later. Either way…begin your day by thanking the Lord for His presence in your life. Remember what He has done and what He IS DOING. And then…Jeremiah says…wait on the Lord. Here’s why the morning is the right time for an appointment with the Father. When our waking thoughts are gratitude and recognition of God…they become the framework for which I experience the entire day. It’s the Lord’s day. He is in it. He isn’t leaving. He WILL be there. And so as the day progresses…I wait. I wait to see where and how He moves. (Different than ‘the Lord showing up.) This is critical because if my day starts in a hurry, selfishly, or without clear direction then I’m much more likely to miss that spiritual meeting. And when that happens…the problems of the day can lead to wondering where God is in my pain…when it was actually ME that missed the appointment. I didn’t tell you that I missed that appointment at Starbucks because my friend and I had written down different Starbucks in our calendars. The desire to get together was there but details were a little mixed up. I wondered what had gone wrong. But my friend was right there. Maybe that describes you and God lately. Your intentions are good. Your day always starts with a prayer, or reading the Word, or quiet time with God. But the truth is…right now is a tough season of life and you aren’t really experiencing His presence. It feels like meetings have been missed between you two. Maybe you wonder if something is broken spiritually. Maybe your pace is so crazy that you forget every morning with the Lord is sacred. He’s your first thought. He’s your first option. But we like options. Life without choices seems bland. (Coke machine) From restaurant menus to the features on our cars to the kinds of songs we sing on Sunday mornings. We want options. But with Jesus…the closer you get…the more He speaks…the more your menu of options for this life diminish. When life options dwindle…and your faith is in the Lord alone it gets scary. It’s not nearly as hard to think God is USUALLY with us compared to thinking God will ALWAYS be with us. The apostles lived this. Expectancy turns to Self-Doubt. They left it all for Jesus alone. But then came John 6. Where Jesus said some very tough things. ‘I am the Bread of Life. Everyone who looks to the Son and Believes in him shall have eternal life. No one can come to the Father without Me. Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.’ When Jesus said THAT…people left Him in droves. So Jesus asked Peter in John 6:67-69 – “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the twelve. Get this reply… Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. (See how Peter's options shrunk?) 69 We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.” Wow. I can’t get this one out of my mind. It’s hard to say to Jesus “I won’t look for any options. I will look only for YOU.” My only appointment is with You. My only help is from You. So Jesus asks 'Peter…are we good?’ ‘Lord…where ELSE are we going? We know who You are. You have words that ring through eternity. We don’t HAVE options. We only have You.’ It’s almost like if Peter could've recited Psalm 25 to Jesus in this moment, he would have. ‘Lord, you said that YOU will save the world. My God, I trust in You: let me not be ashamed, let not my enemies triumph over me. Indeed, let no one who waits on you be ashamed. And by ‘no one’, Jesus, I mean ME! Our whole group just bailed out after that last sermon…but I’m still here. Don’t let me look foolish, Lord. You are all I have.’ On one hand I believe you'll show up...so help me overcome my unbelief that you might let me down. Like that desperate moment for Princess L. in Star Wars? Help me Obi-Wan, you’re my only hope. For Peter and the others…the tough times were coming fast. And when Jesus was arrested in John 18:12 – Peter did what many of us do when we try to wait on the Lord. He panicked that it wasn’t turning out…like HE THOUGHT IT WOULD. We get a picture of our rescue by the Lord painted perfectly in our mind. Then Peter suddenly broke out in a cold sweat…if Jesus wasn’t powerful enough to stop His own arrest…how could He EVER be our Messiah? He panicked. His perfect picture of Jesus as the Savior was coming apart before it ever came together. Doubt and panic about where God IS tends to come in the ‘Alone Phase’ of waiting. Alone. The apostles started out expecting a conquering King to follow. Followed by lots of confusion. Even doubts. But with the arrest of Jesus…it just felt lonely. He was gone. So Peter started attacking people. Literally. Then in John 18:16 while Jesus was on trial at the High Priest’s home…Peter could only ‘wait outside’ the door. Maybe that’s you. You’re waiting on Jesus. But the door seems closed. You’ve knocked and there seems to be no answer. Next comes the panic button. You promised me Lord, that you’d be faithful to me. That you were going to come and make it right. I had this perfect idea of what that would like. And You would have been magnificent! You would’ve received all the glory and praise and credit. So why am I having trouble finding You?! It’s this exact moment that’s SO critical...and real...when it comes. Many of us have been here. We have faith. We’ve checked our motives. But the question remains…where are YOU? Lord, I’m confused, doubting myself and feeling alone. Even embarrassed. And I feel so forgotten and trivial. That’s exactly what David was afraid of in Psalm 25. Lord…I’m waiting. Don’t let me be confused. Doubting myself. Don’t leave me alone. This is exactly when you MUST hang on. When it seems you are all alone. When it feels like your darkest moment. Hold on. Hold on. Because what happened last with Peter and Jesus was more than Peter could have EVER dreamed…even in his expectant moments. The last phase of waiting…is being expectant. Again. Only this time expectant is different. In the past you expected things with child-like enthusiasm. But that was before the confusion and the doubt and the loneliness. Now you’re expectant because without Jesus…you are empty. You are broke. Like Peter said… Lord, to whom shall we go? YOU have the words of eternal life. Without you…I’m nothing. My menu of options has funneled down to just One. I must make my appointment. Another group of disciples had the same dilemma after Jesus was killed. Listen to Luke 24:13-25 - Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. 15 As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; 16 …… 17 He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?” They stood still, their faces downcast. 18 One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, “Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” 19 “What things?” he asked. “About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. 20 The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; 21 but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. They had almost given up. "We HAD hoped." Their darkest moment. Later that evening the apostle’s eyes were opened to the truth...then they KNEW. Jesus lives. Waiting on Jesus is never a waste of time. He’s NEVER going to stand you up. Even when He has to conquer the grave…He. Will. Be. There. He won’t leave you sheepish, embarrassed, or uncertain like the time I walked out of that coffee shop. Never. Maybe you’re waiting on the Lord for comfort since you lost a loved one. And it seems dark and lonely. Maybe you’re a homesick student and the semester is just getting started. Maybe you’re skeptical about whether or not God is even there. If you’re feeling lost at sea, tiny and all alone. Hang on. 83 days into a big adventure that had gone all wrong, Mylene Paquette was hanging on. Lost at sea. Tiny and all alone. Or so she thought. On her tiny little radio she heard a voice break through. Three different times she heard her NAME. "Mylene Paquette. Mylene Paquette. Mylene Paquette." Then she heard this…“Here is QM2. QM2. QM2.” As in Queen Mary 2 captained by Kevin Oprey. Some say the most magnificent ocean liner ever built. Fifteen restaurants. Five pools, a ballroom, theater…even a planetarium. But to Mylene the QM2 was hope. Then she saw it…a little dot on the horizon that turned into the looming silhouette of this magnificent ship coming just for HER. She later wrote… “I was staring at her, she looked like a mirage. Then I heard the voices. I saw her colors. I heard the engines. I saw the architecture. I was trying to cope with what was happening. To realize that this was true. The Queen Mary was there for me. I had been alone. Suddenly I was a rock star in the middle of nowhere.” See, the Queen Mary 2 and Mylene in her little rowboat shared a code that everyone who travels the seas holds. If you find out someone is in distress and you can get there…you drop what you’re doing. You change course. You go help. So this enormous luxury liner changes course to meet one woman with her broken oars and nearly broken spirit. Captain Oprey later said ‘there was no question about whether or not to go. It’s ALWAYS one vessel looks out for the other.” They brought Mylene a new sat phone. 2 anchors. Fresh fruit and vegetables. Croissants and cookies. Chips, drinks…a scraper to remover barnacles. Duct tape. Soap. Towel. A wool blanket. But with all of that…she said it was the voices and cheers of the people on board the QM2 that she will carry for the rest of her life. Two months later she pulled into port in France. After 10 capsizes. Four of eight oars broken and 130 days at sea. A trip that was supposed to be about a woman crossing the Atlantic solo turned out to be a story about waiting and rescue. Showing up BIG when it seemed there was no one coming at all. If you’re lost at sea. Fighting through a hurricane. Nothing to sustain you. Feeling alone…never forget this. God is FOR YOU. He sees you. He knows your every move. He’s calling out your name like the captain of the ship. And He’s coming. For you. In fact…He’s never been apart from you. So hold on. Psalm 34:18 – The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. In Acts 17, Paul said that God created the world and everything in it for a reason. Acts 17:27 - God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. He’s not far. Even when we’ve misjudged Him. He is close. May the Lord fill us with expectancy for what He will do. May we lift up our eyes, OUR help comes from the Lord. Our best option. Our only option. He will not delay. So I will not fear. His promise is true. Help is on the way. 8