I love roller coasters. I love the anticipation of that big first drop. I love that feeling of being out of control. And I love the speed. Now I can love all those things because ultimately I trust the ride is safe. Even though it’s a tremendous thrill, I have confidence that I will make it through to the end of the ride.
My default mode or what I believe about roller coasters is: enjoy the ride because you’re going to make it out alive.
You and I also have a default mode for processing life. We have certain ways of responding to people, circumstances, difficulties, surprises, disappointments, etc. If we do nothing to change, we’ll most likely continue to respond the way we always have.
There’s a lot that goes into determining our default settings. Parents, friends, teachers and coaches had a part in setting them for us. So did the media we’ve been exposed to and the books we’ve read. Without consciously thinking about it–we’ve developed a default mode for how we process life and make our choices.
I’ve noticed something about my default mode that I really don’t like. When faced with bad news or even just the unknown, I worry, I fear the worst and I doubt God’s goodness. That’s my default mode. And it looks like it was the same mode the disciples struggled with.
Mark 4:35-41 says…
That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
Some of these guys were experienced fishermen so they’d experienced bad weather before, but this must have been a really bad storm. There’s no record of anyone saying, “Hey guys, calm down! It’s not that bad. We can ride this out.”
This was a bad storm and they thought they were about to drown. Now what would have changed everything for them, what would have helped reset their default mode, was knowing that the one who was in complete control and who cared for them was asleep on a cushion at the back of the boat.
But they either doubted His power or His care because they wake Jesus up and ask Him a question we’ve probably all asked or at least wondered, “Don’t you care?”
It seems that our default mode, well, I won’t speak for you…it seems that my default mode is to question God’s goodness when circumstances are bad. I allow the severity of the situation to completely obscure the simple fact that God really does care for me.
Even when we don’t see Him doing anything, He is still good and He still cares. We will never escape His grasp. We will never be forgotten. We will never have to go it alone.
So Jesus got up and told the storm to be quiet and still. And it was.
What the disciples didn’t know was that their hearts and minds could have been quiet and still even in the midst of the furious storm. They didn’t have to wait for the storm to be quiet before they could be.
And that should really be my default mode when it comes to life. Sure, there will be tough times and painful circumstances and things I won’t understand, but because God is good and He cares and He’s in control, I can trust Him to see me safely through whatever ups and downs and twists and turns come my way.
Panic. Fear. Worry. Doubt. Discouragement. That’s my default mode. I wish I could say that resetting it is easy, but it’s not, at least it hasn’t been for me. Developing a new default mode requires ongoing effort and time in God’s word to believe the truth–that God is good, that God cares and God is in control.
Has that ever been your prayer? Or have you ever at least wondered?
You might be in the midst of a second round of chemo, like my friend Jeff.
Or like one young man I heard about today…in less than a year–your dad dies, your mom dies and then the day before you leave for boot camp–your girlfriend breaks up with you.
Or despite doing everything you know to do, your marriage continues to get worse. Or your child continues to rebel. Or your boss is still a jerk.
Or your finances keep getting worse. Just when it seems like you’re about to get ahead, you get hit with an unexpected bill.
God, have You forgotten me? Can You not see what I’m going through here?
Where are You, God? And why aren’t You helping?
When circumstances are bad and they don’t seem to be improving and God isn’t saying much…it’s easy to lose hope, to wonder where He is and what He’s up to. It’s easy to doubt His love for us. It’s easy to doubt if He’s even good.
I’ve been there. I’ve doubted. I’ve wondered. I’ve been angry. I’ve been discouraged.
And I’ve lost hope.
Have you? Are you there now?
I wonder if Noah could relate.
Noah was a righteous man living among a lot of evil. He was trying to do the right thing and honor God when those around him weren’t.
And God saw. He knew what was going on. Check out the story in Genesis 6.
So Noah does what God says and builds an ark. And God does what He says He’ll do and He sends a flood, which Noah, his wife, his three sons and their wives ride out in the ark. Along with a bunch of animals. Read that part of the story in Genesis 7-8.
The flood began “in the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, on the seventeenth day of the second month…” And in the coming days, every creature that lived on dry ground is completely wiped out except for Noah, his family and the animals on the ark.
And “the waters flooded the earth for a hundred and fifty days.”
It rained for forty days and nights, but the earth was totally flooded for five months before God sends a wind so that the waters will begin to recede.
I grew up near the ocean, but I can’t remember ever being so far out on a boat that I couldn’t see the shore. I’ve also never been on a cruise. Maybe you have. Maybe you’ve been out at sea and couldn’t see land.
Of course, a cruise ship and Noah’s ark couldn’t be more different. Noah’s boat was built to ensure the human race would survive a world-wide flood. It held a total of eight human beings, a whole bunch of animals and enough food to last until the flood was over. No staterooms. No dining rooms and endless buffets. No deck chairs. No casinos. No shore excursions.
Just Noah, his family and the animals. Alone on the earth. Surrounded by nothing but water. For five months. And we have no record of God communicating with them during that time. Nothing. Not one word.
The first word of chapter 8 is one of my absolute favorites in the Bible: But.
“But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded.”
A couple verses later, it says, “The water receded steadily from the earth.”
After five months, the waters are finally beginning to recede. And “the waters continued to recede until the tenth month, and on the first day of the tenth month the tops of the mountains became visible.”
Seven and a half months after the flood began, the tops of the mountains are now visible. Moses waits another forty days and sends out a raven and a dove. The raven kept flying back and forth. The dove looks for dry ground, but can’t find it so it returns to Noah. After a week passes, Noah sends the dove out again. This time the dove returns with a freshly plucked olive leaf in its beak, so Noah knew the water was receding.
After another week, Noah sends the dove out again. This time it doesn’t return.
“By the first day of the first month of Noah’s six hundred and first year, the water had dried up from the earth. Noah then removed the covering from the ark and saw that the surface of the ground was dry. By the twenty-seventh day of the second month the earth was completely dry.”
In Noah’s six hundredth and first year on the twenty-seventh day of the second month the earth was completely dry. He and his family had been on the ark for one year, one month and ten days.
As I read this story today, here’s what jumped out at me…
The waters receded slowly.
Once the rain stopped, God didn’t zap away all the water. He sent a wind. That’s it. No zapping. No wand-waving. No miracles.
Just a wind. And then a lot of waiting.
Oh, and remembering. God always remembered Noah and his family and the animals.
He never forgot them.
Just like He never forgets you.
Maybe you’ve been enduring a 13-month trial of your own. Or maybe a 23-month trial. Or 33 months. Or longer.
God hasn’t forgotten though. There might still be a miracle coming, but there might just be a slow-receding.
Little by little the waters of difficulties and pain and confusion are receding. It might feel so slow that you don’t even notice. You will though. One day, you’ll notice the dove will return with an olive leaf. And not long after, the dove won’t return at all.
The waters will have receded. You’ll see dry ground again.
Until then, remember that God remembers. He never, ever forgets you.
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?
“This life doesn’t matter. It’s all about eternity and life in heaven.”
Do you agree?
I don’t. Not any more anyway.
It wasn’t that long ago that I would have agreed with that statement or something like it. Or I would have at least thought I was supposed to agree with it. The problem was that my heart just wasn’t in it. And now my head isn’t either.
God created us as physical beings in a physical world. Yes, we’re also spiritual beings and live in a spiritual world, but the physical part isn’t bad or wrong.
After six days of creation, God pronounced that everything was good. His physical creation, including Adam, was good. In fact, the only thing that wasn’t good was Adam being alone. So God formed Eve and brought her to Adam.
Adam and Eve, just like you and me, were given five senses that allowed them to relate to and experience this physical world. And the fact that I have these five senses tells me something about God. He wants us to enjoy life and experience pleasure. Physical pleasure in this life. And a lot of it.
Listening to your favorite song is pleasurable.
Viewing a sunset is pleasurable.
Smelling freshly baked cinnamon rolls is pleasurable.
Tasting one is even more pleasurable.
Kissing someone is pleasurable.
I just can’t get away from the fact that our fives senses are wired by God to experience the pleasures of this physical world He created for us. That tells me He wants us to enjoy it. That it might even give Him pleasure to watch us receive pleasure from all He has given us.
Granted, we can take pleasure too far. We can misuse it and we can abuse it. We can even make it into a god or an idol, something we bow down to and worship. And that’s when we get into trouble. When our desire for physical pleasure goes too far and becomes an addiction.
Fortunately, God gives us commandments that teach us how to live in this physical world. His laws protect us and provide for us. As we walk according to His ways, we discover freedom and maximum pleasure. His commands aren’t meant to rob us of fun and pleasure–they’re meant to provide it!
So will heaven be better than this life?
I used to think it wouldn’t be. I mean I knew it would be or that I was at least supposed to believe it would be, but again, my heart wasn’t really in it. The idea of floating around in some spiritual dimension didn’t really have much appeal to me. It sounded boring. Don’t get me wrong, heaven was definitely better than the alternative, but not something to really get excited about.
But did you know that heaven will be on earth? That we’ll have bodies? That we’ll eat and drink? That we’ll enjoy living in friendship with others and with God? On earth?
Read Genesis 1 and 2. And read Revelation 21 and 22. Those are the first two and last two chapters of the Bible. It gives us a glimpse of what it was supposed to be like and what God will restore it to. Notice the similarities in those four chapters.
If you ever long for what you don’t have or wish friendships were more fulfilling or loved ones didn’t die or wars were never fought or rivers were never polluted, then what you’re longing for is what used to be and what will be again…on this earth.
God created us to live in friendship with Him. Here on earth. The plan got messed up when Satan tempted Adam and Eve to go their own way rather than God’s way. But God hasn’t given up on the original design. He’s going to restore it and make it all new.
And we’ll live with Him. In friendship. Here on earth. Experiencing all the pleasures these bodies were designed to receive. And it will be better than anything we can imagine.
In the meantime, we experience life on earth and walk with God by faith. And we get glimpses of what’s to come when we enjoy a beautiful sunset or walk along a beach. Or when we enjoy a delicious meal and great conversation with friends. Or when a husband and wife make love.
Life on earth in the heavenly kingdom will be amazing, but it doesn’t mean this life now doesn’t matter. It’s a gift from God to be enjoyed.
We’re wired by God for pleasure and He’s graciously given us His word to provide for us and protect us.
Other than a couple minor league baseball teams, we don’t have professional sports in Arkansas. We used to have an arena football team in Little Rock, but that didn’t last. And back in the 90′s, we actually had a couple minor league hockey teams in Little Rock, but they didn’t last either. I’m not sure Arkansas was ready for professional hockey, let alone two teams.
If you live in Arkansas, the team you most likely follow is the Arkansas Razorbacks. So when anything happens involving the Razorbacks–it’s a big deal in this state. Like when the football team rises to #3 in the BCS rankings right behind LSU and Alabama. Or when a 19-year-old football player dies unexpectedly the morning after a win over Mississippi State.
Yesterday morning, Garrett Uekman was found dead in his dorm room. Cause of death hasn’t been determined. Tonight, in about 30 minutes, there will be a candlelight vigil at the basketball arena on campus. My wife, my daughter and I will attend. We didn’t know him, but we want to be a part of honoring the passing of a young man who was the age of my youngest daughter.
Sadly, word came out today that Westboro Baptist Church out of Topeka, Kansas plans to picket at Garrett’s funeral. Maybe you’ve heard of this hate-filled group of people who also picket the funerals of soldiers who gave their lives in defense of our nation.
Somehow this “church” has managed to twist the love of Christ into a license to spew their hate for anyone who doesn’t see the world the way they do. No wonder the world looks at Christians and says, “No thanks.”
The truth?
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” (John 3:16-17)
Waiting is one of the hardest aspects of walking with God. And since God never seems to be in a hurry, waiting is something we should not only get used to, but learn to embrace.
I won’t suggest I enjoy waiting. I don’t. But I do know it can be a rich, productive season, whether it lasts a day, a year or 40 years, like it did for Moses.
I have a friend who will undergo tests today in Houston to see if he is still cancer free. He had major surgery earlier this year to remove cancerous areas from his colon and liver. He’ll learn the results of the tests on Wednesday. Tonight and tomorrow will be a season of waiting. Two nights might not seem like a long time, but try waiting that long to find out if your cancer has returned.
Maybe you’ve also waited for test results. Or the return phone call after an interview. Or maybe you’ve waited for a spouse or a baby. I have two daughters who are married to men in the military. Each have had to wait for their husbands to return home.
It could be that you’re in a set of circumstances you’d rather not be in. You’re unemployed. You’re in a financial mess. Your marriage is falling apart. Your child continues to live in rebellion. Or you’re sick and the doctor can’t figure it out.
And you’ve prayed. You’ve cried out to God. And you’ve waited. And waited. And waited.
And you’ve wondered where God is and what He’s doing.
I’ve been there. It’s frustrating. It’s discouraging. It’s confusing.
Or, if we let it, the waiting can be a time of growth and greater intimacy with God. It can be a season that prepares us for what’s to come. Greater responsibility? Greater fruitfulness? Greater influence? Only God knows.
In Acts 7, Stephen is speaking before the Sanhedrin (a Jewish court):
23 “When Moses was forty years old, he decided to visit his fellow Israelites. 24 He saw one of them being mistreated by an Egyptian, so he went to his defense and avenged him by killing the Egyptian. 25 Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not. 26 The next day Moses came upon two Israelites who were fighting. He tried to reconcile them by saying, ‘Men, you are brothers; why do you want to hurt each other?’
27 “But the man who was mistreating the other pushed Moses aside and said, ‘Who made you ruler and judge over us? 28 Do you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’ 29 When Moses heard this, he fled to Midian, where he settled as a foreigner and had two sons.
30 “After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to Moses in the flames of a burning bush in the desert near Mount Sinai. 31 When he saw this, he was amazed at the sight. As he went over to look more closely, he heard the Lord’s voice: 32 ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.’ Moses trembled with fear and did not dare to look.
33 “Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off your sandals; the place where you are standing is holy ground. 34 I have indeed seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their groaning and have come down to set them free. Now come, I will send you back to Egypt.’
35 “This is the same Moses whom they had rejected with the words, ‘Who made you ruler and judge?’ He was sent to be their ruler and deliverer by God himself, through the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 He led them out of Egypt and did wonders and miraculous signs in Egypt, at the Red Sea and for forty years in the desert.
When Moses was 40 years old, he decided to visit his fellow Israelites. He thought they would see him as the one to rescue them from the Egyptians. And then he commits murder. He decided. He thought. He killed. God wasn’t in it.
Clearly, this was not God’s timing or God’s ways. And so Moses flees. For 40 years. Until it’s God’s timing for him to return to Egypt and do things God’s way.
Look what happens though when it is God’s timing. The very same Moses they rejected is later sent back to them as the one God would use to deliver them from the hands of the Egyptians. Moses had the right idea–his timing was just off.
During your season of waiting, God will continue to work. You may not always see it, but He will never stop working. He will be working to mature you, to give you wisdom, to teach you His ways and to prepare you for what’s to come. He will be at work in your circumstances and in the lives of others.
When you lose sight of God, remember this: no matter what is happening, God will always be at work so you will know Him better and trust Him more. He will always be working for your good and His glory.
Maybe you have a dream or a desire–something you really believe God has put on your heart. But nothing is happening. There’s no forward progress. No end in sight to your current circumstances. God doesn’t seem to be cooperating.
As hard as this will be, let me encourage you to relax. Seek God with all your heart. Trust Him. Do everything He commands. And wait patiently.
I just finished reading through the Old Testament books of Judges and Ruth. They both take place during the same time period in Israel’s history.
In Judges, we get a look at all of the various people who led Israel during the time from about 1382 to 1043 BC, including Deborah, Gideon and Samson. These were dark times in Israel’s history as they continually turned their backs on God and experienced His rebuke.
In Ruth, we’re introduced to one family and all of the pain, confusion and hardship they endured. It’s a powerful story with a great twist at the end. Be sure to read it–it’s only four chapters.
What strikes me as I read about the lives of these men and women is that their stories are always being played out in the context of a much bigger story. And that’s true with you and me also.
There’s God’s story and there’s our story, which is also part of God’s story. Your story and my story are sub-plots. We’re not the main story. God is.
In Ruth’s case, she lived in the country of Moab–just east of Israel. Because of a famine in Bethlehem, a man named Elimelech left there and went to live in Moab with his wife Naomi and their two sons. Eventually, Elimelech dies and the two sons marry Moabite women. Ruth is one of these two women.
About ten years after leaving Bethlehem, both of the sons die also. That’s when Naomi gets word that the famine in Bethlehem has ended, so she decides to go home. Ruth insists on going with her so these two widows set out for Bethlehem.
In a period of ten years, Naomi has gone from living in the Promised Land, being married and being the mother of two sons to living in a foreign country, losing a husband, losing both sons and now returning home unhappy, unfulfilled and feeling bitter about life.
How do we know she feels this way? When she arrives in Bethlehem, she tells people not to call her Naomi, but to call her Mara, which means “bitter.”
It would be hard to blame her, right? It’s been a pretty rough ten years. There had to be many times on that road back to Bethlehem that she thought, “Where’s God when you need Him?”
Have you ever felt that way?
I have. Lots of times. I’ve been angry, confused and bitter. I’ve wondered where God was and why He wasn’t helping. You might feel that way today.
Your marriage is in trouble.
Your child won’t listen to you.
You just lost your job or your house or both.
You desperately want a child, but can’t get pregnant and it doesn’t help that the unmarried teenage girl can.
The diagnosis came back. It’s not good and not what you expected.
So where’s God when we need Him?
Let’s step back into the lives of Naomi and Ruth again and see what we learn…
Once back in Bethlehem, Ruth meets a close relative of Naomi’s deceased husband. This man, named Boaz, has the right to purchase the property owned by Naomi’s husband and sons, which he does. And part of the deal is that Ruth becomes his wife.
God is working out His bigger story, but He’s also caring for Naomi and Ruth.
Eventually, Boaz and Ruth have a son, named Obed. When he is grown, Obed and his wife give birth to a son, named Jesse. Years later, Jesse becomes the father of David. King David.
And about a thousand years later, Jesus, the Savior of the world, is born in the line of King David.
Naomi couldn’t have known that was going to happen. Neither did Ruth. God knew though. He was always working in history to bring about His bigger story, His master plan to save the world.
Do you know how your present difficulties may be used by God one day? No, but He does. He sees your pain and suffering and none of it will be wasted. As you trust Him and persevere, He is conforming you to His image and using your circumstances to advance His kingdom.
No, you can’t see it, but He can. Just keep believing Him.
He’s not just the God of the big story, He’s the God of your story. He has a good plan for you. His love for you will never fail. When you seek Him, you will find Him.
Naomi felt bitter because she thought God was against her. I get that. I’ve felt that way. It’s just not true though. God is never against us. He’s always for us. We just need to remember there’s always a bigger story being played out. And we have a part in it. Our current, painful, confusing circumstances are part of God’s bigger story.
We don’t have to become bitter. That happens when we focus only on what we see and feel. Genuine joy and peace are ours when we choose to keep our eyes on God and trust that He is good and that He is working things out for our good and His ultimate glory.
Where is God when we need Him?
He’s here with us. He can be trusted, even when all hell is breaking loose. He is not the cause of your pain or difficulties, but He can use them to accomplish His purposes in your life and in the bigger story.
Our part is to walk faithfully with Him and not give up. Naomi and Ruth could have given up. On life and on God. But they didn’t.
In the closing scene of Ruth, we see Naomi holding Obed in her lap, caring for him. There’s no way she could have known she was holding the grandfather of King David.
God has a good plan for you. Keep trusting Him. Keep seeking Him. Keep obeying Him. You cannot possibly imagine all the good He’s going to do for you and through you, if only you will keep walking with Him.
When things go wrong, terribly wrong, we can’t help asking God, “Why?”
Why did You let this happen?
Why did you let him die?
Why can’t I get pregnant?
Why can’t I find a job?
Maybe you’ve asked one of those questions. Maybe you’re asking one now. Or a different one.
Often, no answer comes. Bad things happen, but we’re only left to wonder why. God just doesn’t provide us with a reason.
And in those times, we have to fall back on His character. If we forget or never realize that He is good, faithful, loving, kind and all-powerful no matter what happens, then we will quickly become angry, fearful, depressed or any number of other negative emotions.
Sometimes though, God pulls back the curtain and gives us more information. Sometimes He answers the “Why?” question. In John 11, Lazarus is sick and eventually dies, but Jesus says, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.”
Now of course the disciples heard Jesus say this, but Lazarus and his two sisters who had sent for Jesus didn’t get to hear what Jesus said. They saw the miracle a few days later when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, but those were a rough few days of silence while they wondered why Jesus wasn’t coming.
In the first chapter of Haggai, we have another instance of God actually explaining why something bad was happening. The temple was in ruins and the remaining Jews in Jerusalem had been saying, “The time has not yet come for the LORD’s house to be built.”
They were wrong.
Apparently, the time had not only come, but had passed. As a result, the people were experiencing drought like conditions in all areas of life. They would plant, but not harvest much. They’d put clothes on, but not be warm. They’d earn wages, but it was like putting money in a purse with holes in it.
Nothing was working out.
Have you been there? I have.
Just when you think a situation can’t get worse–it does. It looks like something will work out, but it doesn’t. You seem so close to getting out of difficult circumstances, but can’t quite ever make it.
Twice in chapter 1, God tells the people, “Give careful thought to your ways.”
I’m not sure we’re very good at that. We don’t stop very often to give careful thought to our ways. I think we just press on, wonder why things aren’t working and then blame God for not helping us.
But in Haggai 1:7-9, God is very clear about why things have not gone well: “You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?” declares the LORD Almighty. “Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with his own house.”
There it is. God answers the “Why?” question. The people had been busy with their own homes, but had ignored His. God’s temple was in ruins, but the people were saying, “The time has not yet come for the LORD’s house to be built.”
They were wrong. It was time for the temple to be rebuilt. It was time for the people to be about God’s agenda.
You and I don’t have a temple to rebuild, but could it be there’s something else God has given us to do, but we’ve ignored it? We didn’t think it was important or we were busy or it would have made us uncomfortable or we simply forgot?
But the bottom line is we didn’t do it. And it has led to drought like conditions in our lives.
Press pause for just a moment.
PLEASE DO NOT HEAR ME SAYING THAT ALL BAD THINGS ARE THE RESULT OF OUR SIN OR FAILING TO DO WHAT GOD HAS ASKED US TO DO.
We live in a fallen world that’s badly stained by sin. Bad things happen. People get sick. Cars breakdown. Loved ones die. And it’s not because of anything we did or didn’t do.
Sometimes though, God does get our attention through frustrating circumstances. Is this one of those times for you? Maybe there’s something He wants you to do. Or maybe He wants you to start walking according to His ways, not yours.
If you ask Him, He’ll tell you, but if you’ll stop and “give careful thought to your ways”, I suspect you will know what He’s wanting you to do.
My wife and son and I drove to Branson, Missouri today for a long weekend. One of my daughters is working here this summer, so we’ll get to visit her and have some fun at a water park and Silver Dollar City.
After dinner at Joe’s Crab Shack tonight, we were driving back to our cabin when we came to a traffic light. The light was red and there were two vehicles in front of us. Very few cars were on the road that had the green light. So we sat there and waited. And waited. And waited. And waited.
It was one of the longest red lights I’ve ever waited for. Maybe the longest. Apparently, it was also one of the longest for the two cars in front of me because they finally just went through the red light. I can’t blame them because I would have done it too, except that right after they went through it, the light turned green and I was able to go.
It made me wonder how often we get impatient waiting for God to answer a prayer, open a door, give a direction or meet a need we have. And because we’re impatient, we go before we should. We take matters into our own hands. We make a decision before we’ve heard from God.
One of the most difficult things we’ll ever do is wait for God. We don’t like to wait. We want to know now. We want our need met now. We want to see how things will work out now.
We don’t want to wait, but quite often, God requires waiting. It’s just how He works, so we might as well learn how to do it well.
When we find ourselves in a season of waiting, we need to remember that God is always good, He’s always faithful, He alone is all-powerful and He never stops loving us. It’s so important to be reminded of these truths. If we forget them, then we will become impatient and possibly make decisions apart from God’s best for us.
Remember that because He is good, He cannot even think a wrong thought toward us. He cannot even consider doing anything that isn’t best for us.
But if we doubt His goodness or His love for us or His faithfulness to His promises, then we will naturally find it difficult to wait for Him.
Are you needing to wait right now?
If you’re wondering what God is up to and why He won’t just do something, if you’re impatient to the point of moving ahead without God’s clear direction, then spend some time meditating on this passage from Psalm 37:3-7. Let His word saturate your mind. Let it bring calm to your heart.
Trust in the LORD and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
Delight yourself in the LORD
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the LORD;
trust in him and he will do this:
He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn,
the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.
Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when men succeed in their ways,
when they carry out their wicked schemes.
You will never go wrong if your goal is to trust Him, delight in Him, commit your way to Him and wait patiently for Him, because He will NEVER fail you.
One of the most confusing and painful things we will ever go through is a desperate, heartfelt prayer that goes unanswered. Or at least seems to.
In John 11, Jesus gets word that his good friend Lazarus is sick. Jesus tells His disciples, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.”
Then John tells us that Jesus loved Mary, Martha and Lazarus. That’s significant because of the word that comes next. The word that confuses us. The word on which the whole story hinges.
“Yet.”
“Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, He stayed where he was two more days.”
Does that bother you? Just a little?
Jesus loved Lazarus and his sisters. He got word Lazarus was sick. Yet He stayed where He was for two more days.
Of course, if you know the end of the story, it’s not so bad. You know that even though Lazarus dies, Jesus brings him back to life. But put yourself in the story–these were real people, after all. Put yourself in Mary’s position or Martha’s. You’ve sent for help from the one person you know can make a difference, but He doesn’t show.
And it’s not like Jesus let them know He wasn’t coming. He just didn’t show. His good friend is sick, but He stays where He is.
Maybe Lazarus was too sick to even know what was happening, but Mary and Martha saw that Jesus wasn’t coming. I’m sure they kept watching the road, waiting for Him. But He was a no-show.
“Yet.”
Maybe you or a loved one are dealing with a serious illness. You’ve begged God for healing, but God doesn’t seem to be doing anything. And the condition is getting worse.
Could be you’re trying to sell your house. Surely, it’s not God’s will for you to be stuck with a house you can’t get out of, right?
Or you’re waiting for a call back after the job interview. You thought it had gone well, but it’s been two weeks and they were supposed to call back a week ago.
Maybe you’ve tried and tried and tried to get pregnant. Your friends have babies, but God doesn’t seem to be listening to your cries.
Where are you, God?
Jesus told His disciples that the sickness would not end in death, rather it was for God’s glory. Jesus could have easily gone right away and healed Lazarus. We know from other stories that He really didn’t even need to go–He just needed to say the word and Lazarus would have been healed.
This time was going to be different though. This time Jesus was going to raise a man from the dead. A man who’d be in the grave for four days.
What if God is using your circumstances, your waiting, your suffering, your confusion…for His glory? Could it be that God is orchestrating circumstances in a way that brings glory to Him?
I know there’s pain and confusion in the waiting. And unlike the situation with Lazarus, our circumstances don’t always turn out like we’d hoped. Our family member dies. The house doesn’t sell and we lose it in foreclosure. The job goes to someone else. A good, faithful woman remains infertile.
I won’t pretend to understand why God does or doesn’t answer some prayers. And I don’t have the words to erase the pain that unanswered prayers can cause, but there’s something very, very powerful that happens right before Jesus raises Lazarus.
Eventually, Jesus made His way to Bethany where Mary and Martha were now mourning their brother. After talking with Martha, she goes to get Mary. When Jesus sees the pain Mary is in, John tells us that:
“Jesus wept.”
Why did Jesus cry? Think about it–He’d already told His disciples that the sickness would not end in death and He knew He was about to raise Lazarus from the dead, but it didn’t matter. He still entered into their pain.
Jesus is not far away and unconcerned. He sees what you’re going through and feels your pain.
As you live in a season of “yet”, remember that while God is orchestrating circumstances for His glory, He also feels your pain. He hurts with you. Waiting is never easy. Often it’s confusing and painful. But there’s a good and loving God in it with you.
Very interesting, huh? What you were seeing didn’t match up with what you were hearing, so your brain told you you were hearing a different sound. The truth was that the sound never changed. Only your perception of it did.
I think the same thing happens with our circumstances.
We “hear” God say in Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.”
Or Hebrews 13:5, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
Then in Romans 8:28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”
And yet everyday we encounter circumstances that seem impossible for us to handle or overcome. A medical diagnosis. A larger than expected tax bill. Unfair treatment from a supervisor. A rebellious child. A never-ending mountain of laundry, a sink full of dishes and an infant that won’t sleep.
We “hear” God say everything will be okay and we even believe Him for a moment or two, but then we “see” our circumstances again and we become fearful, worried, anxious or discouraged.
Is there any hope for us? Is it really possible to rise above the up and down feelings of this life? Is there any way to truly experience the joy and peace of God regardless of what we see?
The answer is “yes.” The key is to see with the right eyes.
2 Corinthians 4:16-18 says:
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
A few verses later, in 2 Corinthians 5:6-7, Paul says:
Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. We live by faith, not by sight.
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.
We live by faith, not by sight.
Abraham was an old man when God told him to leave his home and go to the land God would show him. Abraham had no children when God said, “I will make you into a great nation…”
David was a teenager with no military experience when he faced down Goliath, the Philistine’s most feared soldier.
Noah built a boat. On dry ground.
Moses led Israel out of Egypt and through the desert for 40 years.
Despite a overwhelming odds and a ferocious propaganda campaign, Nehemiah led the rebuilding of the wall around Jerusalem in just 52 days.
A woman who’d been bleeding for 12 years new if she could just touch the cloak Jesus was wearing she’d be healed. She did. And she was.
A Roman soldier requested that Jesus heal his servant. The father of a dying 12-year-old girls asked Jesus to heal her. The servant was healed. The girl, who died before Jesus arrived, was brought back to life.
We fix our eyes on what is unseen. We live by faith.
God gave us His word, the Bible, to reveal Himself, His purposes and His ways to us. As we read it, we get to know Him better. We see what He’s up to in our lives and in the world. We see how He works. And our faith grows stronger.
The more we read it, the more we understand and trust Him. We are better able to fix our eyes in what is unseen. We find that we are more equipped to live by faith, not by what we see.
None of the people I mentioned above were perfect. Abraham passed his wife off as his sister so he wouldn’t be killed. Twice. David committed adultery and murder. Moses disobeyed God and wasn’t even allowed to enter the Promised Land.
No, they weren’t perfect, but they didn’t give up. They kept going despite their sins and circumstances. They chose to fix their eyes on the unseen. They walked by faith, by believing that what God said was true even though what they saw didn’t line up.
Gregg Stutts - Executive Pastor of The Church at Arkansas in Fayetteville. Husband to Robyn and father to Rachel, Erica, Amy and Rob. On a continuing journey of believing God.
Gregg Stutts - Executive Pastor of The Church at Arkansas in Fayetteville. Husband to Robyn and father to Rachel, Erica, Amy and Rob. On a continuing journey of believing God.
