How Long Is Too Long to Wait?

One of the biggest frustrations with waiting is how long things seem to take. We’ve all waited for justice, recognition, that long-awaited letter or call from a loved one or for a relationship to heal. Whether we recognize it or not, waiting is a constant in our lives.  At any given moment we’re all waiting for something or someone.

Waiting patiently is hard, especially in a culture with a microwave mentality and an on-demand urgency in everything from meals to work to traffic even our relationships. We want what we want and we want it yesterday. In this climate of instant gratification, we can easily feel as if we’ve been waiting forever for something, even if it’s only been a relatively short time.

Tolstoy said, “The strongest of all warriors are these two, time and patience.” Yet so often we give away our strength in favor of immediacy. Perhaps instead of asking “How long should we wait”, the more important question is, “Can we wait?” Or more specifically, “What happens if we don’t wait?”

Like Abram, we can get pretty tired of waiting for that something to happen. Ten years after God had promised Abram that he would be the father of many nations he was still childless and he lamented to God about his situation. In Genesis 15:1-6 God told Abram, "Look up at the heavens and count the stars—if indeed you can count them. Then he said to him, "So shall your offspring be." Now, that’s an amazing promise.

Yet, it wasn’t too long after this promise that a bewildered Abram lapsed in faith with a little help from his wife Sarai. What’s going on, how on earth is God going to fulfill his promise? There must be a way God, it’s been years of waiting with no visible results. 

As was the custom of the day and certainly not God-inspired, Sarai suggests a short-cut and adamantly begs her husband, “Go sleep with my handmaiden and we can build a family through her.”  Maybe Abram thought, that sounds good to me, sure why not?

Sarai made her own plan that seemed good to her and plus it was acceptable to her culture. Sound familiar? Abram could of, should of, but he didn’t. If Sarai thought Lot gave them a whole lot of problems, she had no idea the radical impact of her decision would have upon her own family and centuries to come.

They couldn’t wait and took matters into their hands. Gosh, that sounds way too familiar for all of us.

For 13 years both of them told everybody that God blessed their decision. The child Ishmael was the promised one, the heir apparent, and the fulfillment of God’s promise. Then something happened that rocked their world that changed their names and lives forever.

Twenty-five years after God’s promise in Genesis 12:1-4 God visits Abram and tells him that He is now going to fulfill His promise. (Gen.17:1-18) Abram can’t believe it, are you kidding me, we’re in our nineties? Abram cries out, “Oh that Ishmael might live.” Can you hear the pain in that statement? Don’t you see God I want this so bad I’ve been telling everyone in my family and friends… Don’t you see this is how it’s supposed to be? This looks really bad for me now.

God’s responded, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him.” (Gen.17:19) Aren’t you glad that despite our many failings God faithfully fulfills His promises! They are not dependent upon us, but upon God’s faithfulness to keep His word!

Waiting on the Lord is essential to growing in our faith journey. May we learn from Abraham that running ahead of God and creating and trusting our own resources can create problems for us and those we love and we can miss God’s best. God helps us. We need His help! 

The good news is that there is more to Abraham’s life journey than this lapse of faith that we can learn from and apply.

Questions for personal reflection and conversation:
Like Abram and Sarai have you been waiting for something for such a long time that you are taking matters into your own hands? Was that effective and where has that gotten you in the past?

What or who can help you to know that God loves and cares about you and has only the best in mind for you?  It’s never too late to change course despite your circumstances and deepen your trust in God’s faithfulness! 

Read: Psalm 62:5-8; Isaiah 64:4; I Peter 5:7

The Land of In Between

Millennia ago Moses asked the Pharaoh, “Let my people go!”  The situation was out of control, intolerable, and they were fed up. I’m guessing you’ve felt the same way at some point in life. Inevitably, through a series of traumatic events, the Pharaoh let the Israelites go. They got their freedom! Free at last! Okay, now what?

Things are not always as they seem or at least what we had hoped for
The Israelites finally got what they wanted, their freedom. After they experienced their miraculous deliverance they were on their way toward a much better place.  Time to celebrate and dance to the music! And so they did.

Ah yes, we’re on the way to the Promised Land, the land of our forefathers, a land flowing with milk and honey! Wow, that sounds nice. Yet, now more than ever, things were radically different. No longer in Egypt, no longer in slavery. Not where they used to be, not where they want to be, but somewhere ‘in-between.' Sound familiar?

Now in a very dry desert place, it’s also a very fertile place for complaining. This is not the Israelites’ finest moment.  Within a few weeks after their deliverance they were unsatisfied with where they found themselves; wandering in the desert.

They missed the green fertile plains of the Nile and forgot what they were delivered from. They were sick of three meals a day of manna. The scripture says they started wailing, “Where’s the beef?” (Num.11:4) It sounds like an old commercial to me.

After graduating from high school a friend and I hitchhiked and backpacked around the US for a summer and quickly got real sick of Top Ramen noodles. The same thing day in day out for almost every meal. Outside of the Tetons National park I started craving a hamburger and I wanted it now!
Maybe you want it now too?

We might find fault with the Israelis, but are we any different given similar circumstances? Sooner or later we will be in our own place of ‘in-between’- out of our comfort zone. The ‘in-between’ place is where the attitude of our heart becomes painfully clear. Our heart’s response will determine if we grow from these times or just merely go through them.

We all have choices
When we’re stuck ‘in-between’ it can be a fruitful place. A place of true change, a heart change, a change of perspective. OR, a place where our hearts can become hard, dull, bitter and caustic.

OR, what if that situation that you can’t stand or even hate could produce that which you need the most? Yes, we all get discouraged from circumstances that we can’t control and wish we could.
Yes, it’s easy to cave into the lesser gods of our culture that cater to our complaints, but God has something better for us

God desires to develop a faith in Him that’s worth having. When we allow Him to do this we discover that He does His best in our ‘in-between’ times.

When You’re At The End of Your Rope

When you’re at the end of your rope where do you go? Hopefully, you have ‘go-to’ friends like Daniel did. When Daniel met with his friends it was not to discuss options or to whine, hold a pity party or plan their escape. For many of us, that’s what we would have done.

We are told they met to pray and wait on God.

Then Daniel returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. He urged them to plead for mercy from the God of heaven so that he and his friends might not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.  Daniel 2:17-18

Some of us think that our desperately needed answer to our dilemma is out there somewhere on YouTube, a counselor, a seminar, a test tube or someone. God can use all that, but at the end of the day, He ultimately provides the answers we need.

Prayer is our most effective source of strength and direction
For far too many, prayers are our last resort.  I might look for a good book that has the answer to my problem or make a list of pros and cons and depend on my own independent decision-making abilities. Being honest, a fair question to ask ourselves is, ‘Why don’t I pray first?’  Maybe it’s because we don’t believe that God is going to answer or we don’t want to wait for an answer. Prayer involves waiting, doesn’t it?

 The Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore, he will rise up to show you compassion. Isaiah 30:18

I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. Psalm 40:1-2

Daniel and his friends waited on God and got their answer. The answer would save their lives. Daniel could have immediately put on his running shoes and made a beeline to the king when he got the answer. He didn’t.  He thanked God for his answer.

It’s so easy to pull out our list of the things we want God to do for us that we can lose sight of who God is. Some of us unknowingly reduce God to being unable to do what we cannot do on our own. 

When Daniel got the answer to the King’s dream and it was only natural that praise would fall on Daniel. You’re the man. He knew that, so he intentionally makes the point of saying to the King, ‘Don’t give me any credit, I’m nothing special, the spotlight should be on God, not me!’ Don’t you just love that?

When we see a beautiful painting that takes our breath away, we don’t say, ‘We want to see the brush used for the painting. We ask who the painter is? God is. He is the artist! When our heart’s desire is to make Him known, we point others to him, not ourselves. Daniel said, ‘Don’t give me any glory, I’m just the brush.’
  
As a result of the interpretation of the King’s dream, Nebuchadnezzar praises the God of Daniel and, ‘Makes Daniel ruler over the entire province of Babylon and placed him in charge of all its wise men. God honors those who honor him.

Daniel tells the king, ‘There’s just one more thing King, I’ve got some close friends who helped make it possible. They waited on God with me. They contributed to my success! Would you please honor them as well?’ Wow, how refreshing, good leaders don’t ever forget to recognize the people that contributed to their success.

At Daniel’s request, the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego administrators over the province of Babylon.

With God on your side, there’s always a way out from between a rock and hard place. With God in your life, he’ll provide light at the end of the tunnel! With God on the throne of your life there will always be enough rope to hang onto, so don’t give up on Him because He will never give up on you!

Standing Strong When Life's Impossible

Often in everyday conversations, we use colorful clichés to describe how we’re doing. When things are going well, we say things like, 'I’m on a roll, I’m on the top of the world, my head’s in the clouds.'  When things are not going well, it’s 'I’m down in the dumps, I’m hanging in there, I’m burned out, stressed out, wiped out, bummed out.'

When we’re in dire straits we can say things like, 'I’m in hot water, I am in over my head. I’m coming apart at the seams.'  

Three common clichés 

I'm between a rock and hard place - a predicament with no apparent solution.

There’s no light at the end of the tunnel – feeling like there’s no hope for the future. 

I’m at the end of my rope - we’re running out of options.

Some of you can relate to one or more of these clichés as you think about some aspect of your life. If any of those clichés describe you continue reading.  

In chapter two of the Book of Daniel, the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar has a dream which is more like a nightmare and cannot sleep. Maybe you can relate to that? You have a dream you can’t remember, but you want to remember, but can’t you can’t get back to sleep. You’re bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and can’t sleep.

Because the King’s astrologers and fortune-tellers cannot tell the king the dream nor interpret it the king is furious and decrees that he will destroy them along with all the other wise men of Babylon including Daniel and his friends! They’re between a rock and a hard place; there’s no light at the end of the tunnel; they’re at the end of their rope.

At this point, Daniel did not know the dream or its interpretation. He was clueless about the dream, however, and it is a big however Dan was confident ‘where’ he would find the answer. Here we see Dan’s faith. He made a decision to trust God that put him out on a limb.

Faith is a decision to trust God 

Dan made a decision to trust God for the answer. Faith is not a feeling or some state of spiritual consciousness. Faith is nothing when there’s no action or response involved. Faith is making a decision to trust God for the outcome.

Sometimes we make faith so complicated, but it’s not. We express faith every time we make big and little decisions to trust God for the outcome, in getting out of our comfort zone. Faith is all about stepping out and making a decision to trust God when we don’t know or can’t control the outcome. 

I’m guessing some of you need to make a decision right now that you don’t know the outcome of? It’s risky because you know that if you might get shortchanged, but you’re going to have to trust God! 

The first thing Dan does is go to his three trusted friends to explain the dire straits they’re in. Can you imagine the conversation, 'If we don’t interpret his dream we’re toast!' 'What, are you kidding me?' 'I told the King NO problem.' 'You said what, what are we going to do?' We could miss this, but something significant is going on here.  

We need support in times of trouble!

Some people think they’re weak if they need people to support them. Dan was a man of incredible personal strength, yet when he finds himself at the end of his rope he goes to his friends and includes them in his and their dilemma. 

Daniel is not the only one who understood this. The Apostle Paul was a rugged tested man who had been in prison, shipwrecked, beaten, stoned and left for dead. While in prison in the final days of Paul’s life he asked that a young man named Timothy would, “Make every effort to come to me soon and bring Luke and Mark with you.”

No matter who you are or how strong you are you need others. Even Jesus during his greatest trial in the garden of Gethsemane he asked Peter, James, and John to be with him for support and prayer. Jesus had three, Paul had three and Daniel had three friends. Who are 3 or 4?

When you’re at the end of your rope who do you call for support? In such a hyper-individualistic world many think they can make it on their own. I can pick myself up by my own bootstraps. I’ll make it alone. I’m self-sufficient. I’m good.

Really? Is the best way to go it alone? God provides friends for our support in times of trouble. Ask yourself, practically speaking, whose list are you on? Who could you call or turn to? Dan had his list, Paul had his list, Jesus had his list of friends. Every one of us needs a list. To be on one and to have one of your own. 

Join us for the continuation of this blog next time.

Zachariah's Song

Songs can leave an impact upon us. Songs can change things. Most of us sing when things are going great, but what if they’re not, can we still sing? In the last blog we saw that Mary could sing after receiving very overwhelming news.

When you love someone you might want to sing to them. Sometimes parents sing silly songs to their young children. I used to sing Sinatra’s ‘I’ve Got You Under My Skin’ to my young daughter Sara as we danced and I held her in my arms. Over the years it became ‘our’ song.

Were all marked by songs aren’t we? Certain songs stand out when were celebrating or grieving. Some songs bring back memories or can bring us to tears. Zechariah sang a song from the depths of his heart that had to with his son John the Baptist and hope of Israel. 

Imagine the old Jewish priest Zechariah singing to his son John? Maybe John like my daughter would say, ”Sing it again dad, sing it again.” Maybe Jesus would tell his mom, “Sing it again mom, please.”

Maybe while John was growing up Zechariah told his son, “Your heavenly father might ask you some day to do something really hard?” We know that John’s mission “to prepare the way of the Lord” was not an easy one, especially when your diet includes eating honey and locusts.

Miraculously (both well beyond childbearing) Zech’s wife gave birth to their son John and they were both very excited to say the least! At his birth Zech broke out into his celebrative song, Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:  “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has come and has redeemed his people.” Luke 1:67-68

Notice Zech’s three words about Israel’s long awaited Messiah, ‘He has come’ Jn.1:1-4,14

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel (God is with us) Isaiah 7:14.

After years of waiting, God’s divine visitation had ‘finally’ come to Israel just as God had promised! Israel had been wondering when their God would speak again? After four hundred years of silence since the prophet Malachi spoke God fulfilled His promise as he said He would!

How long have you been waiting for something or someone?  

Maybe you’re in a long cold winter of waiting and are feeling kind of hopeless and losing your sense of purpose? Then, you need hear Zack’s chorus, ’He has come!’ 

He has come and revealed His Son to show His extravagant love to you! He wants to assure you that He knows everything about you and cares about you. You are His work of art that is yet to be completed!

Perhaps we’ve become cold and numb and in desperate need of a touch from God? Maybe we’re feeling guilty about something we’ve gotten into? Maybe we're worried about our future? Once again we need to hear Zack’s words, ’He has come to redeem His people’ to give us hope for today and our future.

In the midst of our winter of discontent sometimes we can’t see clearly. We might not even be able to see our own reality. We might be blinded by our own grief and tears. If so, hear the encouraging words of Isaiah.

I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.  Isaiah 42:16

When things seem hopeless and uncertain be encouraged that, ’He has come’ for you too! He has come to bring light into your darkness.  Jesus came to live and die for you so that you could truly know Him and be His now and forever!  Now, that is something to sing about don’t you think?

Everyone sings something. So, what will your song be? May you be reminded this winter that Zechariah’s chorus ‘HE HAS COME’ can be “your song” too!

Hope For A Better Tomorrow

In the midst of shutdown, immigration and security concerns and our own stuff we all hope for a better tomorrow. All of us have hopes and dreams that we would see the best of life for others and for ourselves, but things get in the way.

Time passes and our hearts continue to long to see those hopes and dreams come to pass. Life takes a turn we didn’t expect or planned from either our own choices or just from the hard stuff of life.

What about your dreams and hopes? Do they seem so distant and unattainable, maybe even impossible?
For some their disappointment has brought them to such a place of desperation that they feel like giving up. Does anyone care about this or about me? Will anyone stand up for justice? Yet, in the midst of all the brokenness there is always hope! It’s not over for you or me?

We can all learn much for our own hopes and dreams from Martin Luther King Jr.’s life. King grew up in middle class surroundings and his father was the highly respected pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. At the beginning of his social justice calling King was afraid for his family and his own life. In a sermon, he prayed

“Lord, I must confess that I’m weak now and I’m losing my courage and it seemed I heard a voice saying, Martin Luther stand for righteousness. Stand up for justice. And lo I will be with you always, even until the end of the world. He promised never to leave me, never leave me alone. No never leave me alone.”

Three nights later a bomb exploded on his front porch. Though not injuring anyone, King a man of fierce determination took it in stride. 

In the book ‘Bearing the Cross’, King said, “I am tired of the threat of death. I want to live, I don’t want to be a martyr. There are times I doubt if I’ll make it through. I’m tired of getting hit, beaten, tired of going to jail. But the important thing is not how tired I am, the important thing is to get rid of the condition that lead us to march.”

Here is an excerpt from King’s famous ‘Letter from a Birmingham Jail’ to fellow church leaders in Alabama.
“But more basically, I am in Birmingham because injustice is here. Just as the prophets of the eighth century B.C. left their villages and carried their "thus saith the Lord" far beyond the boundaries of their home towns, and just as the Apostle Paul left his village of Tarsus and carried the gospel of Jesus Christ to the far corners of the Greco Roman world, so am I compelled to carry the gospel of freedom beyond my own home town. Like Paul, I must constantly respond to the Macedonian call for aid.”

To read the whole letter in context click here:
When the march in Selma was over King addressed the weary marchers from the steps of the capital.
“How long will it take? However difficult, however frustrating the hour, it will not be long. Not long, because no lie can live forever. How long? Not long, because you reap what you sow. How long? Not long, because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice. How long? Not long, because my eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord…” 

King was a man of focus who inspired many to re-consider the cultural norms of injustice. Though exhausted from years of steady plodding he remained resolute. Over the years I’d heard others refer to less admirable aspects to his life in order to minimize what good he had done. 

What strikes me the most was not his personal sacrifices or his incessant non-violent marches, nor even his eloquent speeches.  It was his firm grounding in the Christian gospel that motivated him to inspire others! 

These are King’s words the night before his assassination in Memphis. “Like anybody, I would like to live long. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will… I’ve looked over and I’ve seen the promised land. I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the promised land. So I’m happy tonight. I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man. My eyes have seen the coming of the Lord.”

King was committed to the cause despite its cost. He carried his hopes and dreams everywhere he went. So, here’s the deal. His hopes and dreams were for others and not just for himself.  He tenaciously persevered through all his trials and like you and I had times of doubt and felt like giving up, but he didn’t!

He knew he wasn’t alone and my friend, neither are you! So, if you feel discouraged or even feel like giving up then reflect on King’s extraordinary life, but may we never forget the real King of the universe who gives us a living hope that will last forever! If you’re Christ follower please know that He WILL be with YOU and WILL hold you in HIS hands while your life story unfolds.

Things might be out of your control, but not out of HIS! He has a plan for you and all is not over, so hold on! He will be with YOU! It’s not over – there’s still time. He will see you through and ultimately to the Promised Land!

When God Says No

We all have been told no to something that we really wanted. It might have been about a job, a relationship, a goal or a worthy pursuit. We can be so sure about something that it’s a given to us. Most of us don’t’ want to hear a no, especially if it’s for a good cause. Yet, could you imagine if God said yes to everyone’s request?  

After the king was settled in his palace and the LORD had given him rest from all his enemies around him. David said to Nathan the prophet, "Here I am, living in a palace of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent."  Nathan replied to the king, "Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for the LORD is with you." 2 Samuel 7:1-3

During a time of Israel’s relative peace King David desired to build the temple for the Ark of the Covenant. It was certainly a great godly goal. Like David, during times of peace and relative calm we too can think to ourselves that this is what I’m going to do, but is it God leading you? Our passionate desire might be a great plan, but it might not be God’s plan.

We all have sincere friends like Nathan who can say to us “Go for it David” and later to find out it’s not God at all. That’s hard to hear indeed, especially after a prophet tells you to go for it.

That night the word of God came to Nathan, saying: "Go and tell my servant David, 'This is what the LORD says: You are not the one to build me a house to dwell in.” 1 Chronicles 17:3-4

Now then, tell my servant David, “This is what the LORD Almighty says: I took you from the pasture and from following the flock to be ruler over my people Israel.  I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men of the earth.

When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body (Solomon), and I will establish his kingdom.  He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.  

                                                                                                                  2 Samuel 7:8-9, 12-13

One of the hardest things in life is to have a vision or a goal and God uses someone else to carry it out. That’s hard stuff, yet that is what happened with David. Here’s David’s response to God’s no.

Then King David went in and sat before the LORD, and he said: "Who am I, O Sovereign LORD, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? … And as if this were not enough in your sight. What more can David say to you?  For you know your servant, O Sovereign LORD.  2 Sam.7:18-20

What an excellent response from David. God, you are so good to me! Can you say that too? God said no to David even though his intentions were noble. It does bring up the question though, is it wrong to dream like this? Absolutely not!!

Have you ever wanted to do great things for God? I hope so. When God said no to your plans what was your response? We so desperately want our reasoning to be God’s reasoning. When we do get a no we can become hurt and disillusioned. Getting a no does not mean we are being disciplined for poor choices or faulty logic. 

Like David, our intentions may be good, but we need not force our passionate will.

God doesn’t ask everybody to build temples, but he does call everyone to some purpose. Many would have been extremely devastated, but David praised God. God’s will was more important to David than his own desire or need. Some day we shall understand that God has a reason for every NO. 

Join us next time to learn more how we can experience acceptance and contentment when God says no.