Waiting while you're waiting

Waiting while you’re waiting

Psalms 27:14; II Kings 4:8-17

When we approach God we are assured of one of three answers – yes, no, or nothing (translated – wait).  A green light, a red light, or no light at all.  God does use a yellow light at times, but we are dealing with those times when it seems there is no light at all.

We love yes, and sometimes even “no” isn’t so bad when we know that we have heard from God.  But nothing –

God has designed a way to further involve Himself in our lives by allowing us to wait on Him.

We think of waiting as a delay, a time when we stay in readiness or anticipation for the fut ure.  At times it is frustrating, because you are doing nothing - but waiting.

Many times in the scripture we see God dealing with us in this very manner, and just because we don’t get an immediate answer doesn’t mean He’s not answering!

But every time the phrase “wait on the Lord” is used in the Bible, it refers to more than just sitting & doing nothing.

Psalms 27:14; 37:34, Proverbs 20:22; Isaiah 40:31 all define waiting as - to bind together (perhaps. by twisting)

How do we entangle ourselves in the processes of God? How do we twist our life together with Him in such a way that they cannot be separated?

                   We Wait Upon Him!

* Restaurant procedure – you can tell when the waiter or waitress really doesn’t have time for you, & it does affect how you want to tip.

* Let’s go to Wal-mart with a father & son

          Is he more prone to give gifts to the son if he screams & begs or if he is helping the father.

Just because we have had relationships that were faulty, we still know how we should have been treated.  That is how God would respond – the right way.

Our text shows the prophet Elisha being waited upon by a great women that lived in Shunem.  She noticed that there was a way that she could help him- and so she did.

          Elisha was ready to give back to her, but it seemed that there was nothing that he could really do for her.

          He gave her a promise

*something bigger than she could even believe for

          Ephesians 3:20 – able to do…above what we think

There is something that happens when we wait on God while we are waiting on Him to provide.  Something miraculous is born out of our efforts to make room for Him when we could be spending our time some other way.

Do something He likes, and He will show up!

In Mark 11:11 we find Jesus going to the temple, looking around, and then leaving and going to Bethany.  We don’t know if it was because there was something there he didn’t like, or because something that he liked wasn’t there.  It may not have been a friendly environment, but he knew where his friends were!  It was no coincidence that he went to Bethany, because that is where his closest friends were.

Mary, Martha, & Lazarus –had their problems, but their friendship gives us a clue to what God likes.

Mary – is a type of worshippers

Martha – a type of workers

Lazarus – a type of witnesses

          Jesus will not stay where He is not worshipped.  He will look, and then He will leave.

David understood something about what God liked when he

said in  Ps. 65:1  “Praise waiteth for thee, O God, in Sion.”

Go where you want, but there is praise for you here!

What are you doing to attract God?  Are there any clues as to how important He is to you?

Isaiah 40:31 – They that entangle themselves with God will exchange their strength.