Waiting on the Lord

          Patience is one thing a lot of people do not have. In today’s world we have grown so accustomed to having things “on demand” that if we cannot have what we want when we want it, we get upset. Think of all the instant gratifications we have: meals that can be cooked in three minutes; movie rentals in seconds by the click of a remote control; instant knowledge, on any topic, simply by using the internet—the list could go on. In America, in the 21^st century, we are a “now!” people. But this is somewhat problematic. A life lived for the Lord Jesus Christ is not one that caters to our “on demand” tendencies. In fact, it is quite the opposite. As Christians we often find ourselves waiting—waiting on the Lord.

The story of Joseph, from the book of Genesis, speaks directly to this. For those who know the story, Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery, he ended up in prison after being lied about by Potiphar’s wife, and ultimately Joseph interpreted dreams for Pharaoh, resulting in his release from prison and rise to number two in command of all of Egypt. It is said that from the time Joseph was sold into slavery until his being promoted to number two in Egypt was thirteen years. Think about that—thirteen years! For this length of time Joseph was in the proverbial “valley” of slavery and prison before being elevated by Pharaoh. But yet, God was with Joseph and blessed him through it all. Even though Joseph was in some bad circumstances, God allowed him to be in the best possible situations during those circumstances. To read this account, check chapters 37, 39 and 40 in Genesis. But what is also remarkable is that Joseph, through it all, remained faithful to the Lord.

During his trials God was grooming Joseph for his future endeavors. Managing Potiphar’s household and involvement in administrative work while in prison certainly prepared him to be over the gathering of food throughout Egypt during the seven bountiful years and distribution of food during the seven years of famine. Joseph himself acknowledged this, as he revealed himself to his brothers when they came to Egypt in search of food. In Genesis 45:4-5 Joseph is noted as stating, “…I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life” (ESV). And in Genesis 45:7 he spoke, “And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors” (ESV).

Waiting is never easy—even waiting on the Lord. But the truth is He has not forgotten you. God knows exactly where you are. He knows your circumstances and the trials you face each day. He even knows the desires of your heart. While in the midst of waiting, do not give up—remain faithful to the Lord. Joseph did. In God’s time He pulled Joseph out of prison and into the high ranks of Egypt. And He will fulfill his plan for you, too.

Famed Southern Baptist evangelist Junior Hill is noted for the following statement: “Waiting may sometimes be unpleasant, it is seldom unprofitable and a delay is always better than a disaster.” I agree. Be encouraged, wherever you are, by the truth that God is “delaying” you in order to prevent disaster in your life. And rest in His sovereignty. He knows best.

Revival: Being Willing To Listen

            To be revived in the Lord is to have your affection for Jesus renewed or refreshed. Those who have been Christian for at least a few years have most likely experienced the up and down of the journey of faith. Most of us have spurts where we are up on our Bible study, prayer, fellowship, and desire to serve the Lord. During these times it seems we cannot get enough of our religion and it even becomes difficult for us to understand how others do not feel the same way. In many Christian circles this is called being on “fire”—and rightly so because a person’s love for the Lord burns hot.  

            But we also have spells where we lull. And as difficult as it is for us to understand, at times, how some people are not on “fire” for the Lord, when we go through our down times it is just as difficult for us to comprehend how we got in such a rut. Apathy rules during those times. And when this takes root, it is hard to break. But most of us have been set free, at some point in our journey—and often multiple times—from such a chain as apathy and have seen afresh the beauty of Jesus. The best feeling in the world, a sense of elation accompanies such a reviving. There is nothing better than a rekindled love for the Savior, for the one who shed his blood on the cross as a sacrifice for our sin.

            If you have experienced such a reviving in the past, can you remember how good you felt when you repented of your sin and turned again to the Lord? Would you not want to experience such joy again? The key to revival, at least in my opinion, is a willingness on our part to listen. Who might we listen to, some might say—the preacher, the music minister? Well, sort of. Though these men might be instruments God uses, I’m referring to listening to God. Are you willing to do such a thing?

            The Bible is very clear that Christians have the Holy Spirit of God residing within them. For example, in Romans 8:9, we read, “…And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ” (NIV).  In addition, in Ephesians 1:13 Paul is noted as saying, “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory” (NIV). And in 1 Corinthians 2:14, the Scriptures state, “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them because they are spiritually discerned” (NIV).  It is by the Spirit of God that indwells the saved person that God the Father communicates with His children.

            The primary way in which God communicates with us is by the Bible. As we read the inspired word of God we get a glimpse of who He is, what He likes and dislikes, and what He desires of us. The Spirit that indwells us makes the truth of Scripture clear to us. At the point something is made clear, it can be rightly understood on our part. But God communicates in a secondary way. And this is through the Holy Spirit. Again, for such communication to take place, a person must be born-again, with the Holy Spirit indwelling them. But such communication does not involve revelation of new truth, or revealing some type of new end-time scenario that is not mentioned in the Bible.

            The secondary way of communication involves more of a personal, day-to-day guidance from God, through the Holy Spirit. The Bible undergirds such communication. For example, we know that in the Bible, especially in the New Testament, there are several places that speak of repentance. For the believer, on a day-to-day basis, God might communicate with you, through the indwelling Holy Spirit, that you need to repent of a certain sin that is in your life. Such communication does not reveal new truth outside of the Bible, but reinforces biblical principles, of which we all are to live by. Also, I believe God communicates in such a way, with us, to direct our daily steps. Perhaps God wants us to take part in a certain ministry, help a certain person, etc. Through the Holy Spirit, God communicates with His children. We often describe this with such terminology as, “God laid such and such on my heart.”

            In Acts 20:22, while Paul was giving his farewell address to the Ephesian Elders, he gives us a little insight into this. Paul stated these words: “And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there…” (NIV). Paul was “compelled by the Spirit” to go to Jerusalem. In layman’s terms, he felt God was moving on him to go to Jerusalem. In our day, we might say God laid it on our heart to go to Jerusalem. However one thinks of it, God spoke and Paul listened.

            And that brings me to my point. When God speaks, are you willing to listen? We often talk about revival—we say we want it desperately—but are we willing to listen to God when He speaks to us? Are we willing to turn from the sins in our lives when He tells us to? Are we willing to listen to what He has to say about the future of our ministry? For true revival to take place, I believe it starts with us. But more importantly, we have to be willing to listen to God. I hope you are. I know that I am.

Revival: We Need It

Most people get a little agitated when someone tells them they need something. I know I do. As independent, free people for someone to tell us we need something is akin to telling us we are deficient. And none of us really want to think we are deficient. But the truth of the matter is we are deficient. There is something we lack. There is something we need. What we need is revival! We need to be revived in the Lord. We need to hunger and thirst for righteousness—to have our affection set once again on the Triune God of the Bible.

Of course, when I say “we,” naturally I’m referring to Christians. While it is true that lost people need to be awakened to the Lord, those who are already His desperately need to have their fire rekindled. As Christians have watched the news in recent weeks, it is easy to feel despair about the rapidity with which our society is changing. Many in our nation have stepped away from biblical values and it is quite natural for us to feel uncomfortable, even upset. But do not lose heart. Do not give up. Most importantly, do not be negatively influenced.

Now is the time for us to bow before the Lord. Now is the time for us to file everything in our life behind Jehovah God. Now is the time to ask God to act in our lives. There is little doubt our nation is changing. And there is little doubt that most Christians really want our nation to change its course drastically. But it starts with us individually. The question we must ask ourselves is this: “Am I where I need to be in Christ?” If the answer to that question is no, I simply ask this: Do you want to be?

In John 6:35 Jesus is noted as saying, “…I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty”(NIV).  For Christians, Jesus nourishes us spiritually. But when we drift from Him, as we are prone to do, we do not get the nourishment we need. The sad truth is that many Christians are starving to death –many need to feast on the bread of life. In short, many need to be revived. If we as individual Christians can be filled, even revived, then cumulatively, as the Church, we can have a positive influence on our nation. There is little doubt our nation needs to turn to God. But it starts with us.

At Fishpond Baptist Church we are having revival services August 9-12. Brother Bill Pullen will start us off on Sunday morning, followed by Brother Robert Smith Sunday through Wednesday nights. Please pray for those services, as well as these godly men. And if possible, please plan to attend. It is my prayer that through those services the Lord speaks to us and we experience true revival; we need it. We need our affection turned to the Triune God.

Short Memories of God’s Goodness

            One of the more interesting aspects of being human is that we do not remember every aspect of our lives. What I mean by this is, for the most part, we only remember the high points of our lives. We remember major events and, possibly, the simple aspects of our lives if they are relatively recent. But typically we do not remember the average days of our lives after they slip into the past. If one were to take a poll, most people would have no recollection of what their day was like on November 6, 2000. I, personally, have no idea what I did that day. Being fourteen years ago, my memory of that day has long slipped away. But one thing I do know, though, is I had recently graduated from high school. I had been out six months. The point to be made is this: I remember a major event from the year 2000, but not an ordinary day. And this is true for a host of people, pertaining to any given year.  

            A significant portion of our lives we do not remember. We know we experienced certain things, but we cannot, often, remember specifics. In a very real sense we, as human beings, are a forgetful people. And while it is true we often forget the mundane, ordinary aspects and days of our lives—we also tend to forget the ways in which God acts in our lives. We often have short memories of God’s goodness and this type of spiritual amnesia is dangerous.

            In the book of Exodus, as one examines the story of the Israelites, short memories are detected. Spiritual amnesia of the worst sort is on display and serves as an example of how we are not to be in our relationship with God. Israel had witnessed the goodness of God and personally experienced how He poured out His plagues on the Egyptians, all the while exempting His own people. As the Passover was instituted and the firstborn of the Egyptians were smitten, God’s demonstration of His choice love for them was on perfect display. And they were keenly aware of it.

            In Exodus 19:4, as God outlines what Moses is to say to the Israelites, He starts by emphasizing,

“You have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Me.” (HCSB)

God’s love for Israel was known and Israel had tangible proof of God acting lovingly in their lives. So much, in fact, that in Exodus 19:8, in response to God’s covenant guidelines with them, they stated, “…We will do all that the Lord has spoken.” (HCSB) Goodness on God’s part and a consciousness of that goodness by the Israelites led them to agree to do all the Lord had commanded.

            All of us, perhaps, have witnessed the goodness of God in our lives. If we are honest, we can probably recall the key moments when we know God has done a mighty work for us. Some are no doubt in such moments currently. At just the right time a new job opportunity came through. The sickness of a family member was healed. The spiritual condition of someone we have been praying for takes a positive note. It is through these circumstances that people of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ know God has been at work and there is no denying it. It is within these moments that the goodness of God is revealed to us.

            This is exactly the place Israel was in during the time of Exodus 19. By Exodus 32, though, Israel’s memories began to fade. The people who had witnessed the marvelous acts of God now acted as if those acts never happened. In Exodus 32:1 we see their turn:

“When the people saw that Moses delayed in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said to him, ‘Come, make us a god who will go before us because this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt—we don’t know what has happened to him!” (HCSB)

While Moses was on top of Mt. Sinai receiving the Law of God –the laws that were to govern God’s holy, chosen nation, Israel—the people of Israel had petitioned Aaron to make a god for them to worship. Why? Because they were impatient and wanted an identifiable leader—something or someone to look to and designate as in charge—because Moses, in their opinion, had taken too long on top of the mountain. This, it seems, is the epitome of self-indulgence—a life focused primarily on what the individual wants. Though the Israelites were indeed guilty of this, they certainly were not and are not the only ones. We, too, turn from the living God.

            One of the primary things a follower of Jesus should remember is this: It does not take long for us to forget what God has done in our lives. I’m not exactly sure why this is the case, but it is true, nonetheless. From Exodus 19 until Exodus 32 the time elapsed is forty days, give or take. But in this short time the Israelites drastically changed course. They shifted from stating they would do everything the Lord commanded in 19:8 to idolatry in 32:1. The old saying rings true, “It’s not what you have done for someone, it’s what you have done for them lately.” We act like this with God. We sing His praises while He is helping, but we soon develop short memories, forgetting what He has done in the past. And this is dangerous. In fact, it leads to something much more troubling.

            The something much more troubling is this: When we allow what God has done for us to be pushed to the back of our mind, we soon push God out of our lives altogether. Close attention to Exodus 32:1 reveals this truth. Notice, again, the text:

            “…Come, make us a god who will go before us because this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt—we don’t know what has happened to him!” (HCSB)

The emphasis from the text, for our purposes, is that Moses, instead of God, is attributed with bringing the Israelites out of the land of Egypt. In such a short time the Israelites had forgotten to acknowledge God for what He had done in their lives. In reality, they knew God was the one who brought them out of Egypt, for God even hints at this in Exodus 19:4, as He is speaking to the Israelites, by noting the following:

“You have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Me.” (HCSB)

Yet, the Israelites had, very quickly, forgotten what God did for them in the past and, instead, attributed it to Moses. There are many followers of the living God who are in such a predicament even at this moment. There are scores of people who have experienced the goodness of God only to soon afterward fall victim to forgetfulness and feelings that God is no longer with them.  Common phrases such as “I don’t feel God with me anymore” are thrown around often. The truth is, though, God is still there. The same God who got an individual out of financial trouble in the past is still concerned with them today. The same God who cured an individual of health problems in the past is still there now. The same God who got a person out of a tough situation is still active in the world.

            Do not be so quick to forget what God has done. Don’t experience the goodness of God, like the Israelites, and then turn from Him. Sometimes in our lives we have to bring everything to a screeching halt and simply dwell on God. As Psalm 46:10 states, “Be still, and know that I am God” (ESV). Perhaps it is good to challenge ourselves, often, and take fifteen- thirty minutes and think about all the good God has done in our lives. Things such as:

·       Help with money

·       Help getting into a certain school

·       The gift of your husband or wife

·       Your salvation/forgiveness of sins

·       Bailing you out of a situation you should have never been in

·       Curing a family member of a certain illness

We need these reminders of how God has been actively involved in every aspect of our lives.  If we do not allow ourselves to forget what He has done, we will not be as likely to push Him out of our lives altogether.

            God is close. He never leaves us. May we never develop spiritual amnesia—short memories of God’s goodness in our lives. If we’re honest, we have all been given way more than we deserve.