Worth the Wait

Abraham said to God, "If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!"

Genesis 17.18 (NIV)

We and Abraham have a similar problem.  We tend to move ahead of God and then ask God to bless what we have done.  God promised a son to Abraham and Sara and they decided that they knew how God was going to do that.  Through Hagar!  Perhaps they just made assumptions because it was "taking so long" for God to answer.  Whatever the case they moved ahead.

When we move ahead of God we really have engaged in sin, disobedience if you prefer.  When we do this not only do we create a bad situation for ourselves but also can make life difficult for others.  By moving ahead we miss the blessing that God has intended.

Wait on the Lord and allow God to lead you as a Christ follower.  Waiting can be difficult but God's blessing is always worth the wait!

God does have a plan!

For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.
Jer 29:11 (NLT)

Most of us are familiar with the verse.  We like this verse.  It is a great promise and is very comforting.  There is just one problem.  We really need to remember context is everything.  God speaks to the Jewish people through Jeremiah while they are in captivity.  They have been deported to Babylon.  They are reaping the consequences of many years of rebellion and not turning back to the Lord.
The point is that God is telling them.  Right now you are upset, hurting and troubled but its OK because I have a plan that is good.  This things that seems horrible to you now, and it is, is not what I have for you always.  I am reminded that in order for us to get to the mountaintop we will eventually have to go through a valley.
Remember that it may seem bad now but God has plans for you that are full of hope and a wonderful future.  It won't always be what we want and it certainly will not be easy.  But God knows what is best and He will give that to you because He is a great and loving God!

Making the Most of It

This is what the Lord of Host, the God of Israel, says to all the exiles I deported from Jerusalem to Babylon:  "Build houses and live in them.  Plant gardens and eat their produce.  Take wives and have sons and daughters.  Take wives for your sons and give your daughters to men in marriage so that they may bear sons and daughters.  Multiply there; do not decrease.  Seek the welfare of the city I have deported you to.  Pray to the Lord on its behalf, for when it has prosperity, you will prosper."
Jeremiah 29.4-7 (HCSB)

I don't know about you but the statement, "Making the most of it!" just doesn't seem biblical.  And yet that is exactly what we find God saying to His people through Jeremiah.  There is a spiritual truth here for Christ followers.  We must learn to the make the most of our situations, good and bad.  There are many times that we find ourselves where we don't want to be.  Family, in the work place, in our finances we encounter situations that we didn't ask for and we don't like.
Truthfully there are some situations we bring on ourselves.  They are the consequences of our choices and sin.  Sometimes we find ourselves in a troubling place because of others decisions.  Sometimes we find ourselves living out a part of God's will that we just don't understand.  So what do we do?  Well, make the most of it!  As Jeremiah says, don't stop living!  Commit it to God and make the most of it for His sake and for yours.  We don't always understand God's plans and purpose but we must do our best to bring Him glory regardless.

Destiny

If you keep silent at this time, liberation and deliverance will come to the Jewish people from another place, but you and your father’s house will be destroyed. Who knows, perhaps you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this.”

Esth 4:14 (HCSB)

Destiny is not necessarily a Biblical word but it is a Biblical concept.  It means, according to Webster's dictionary, "Something a person or thing is designated, assigned or dedicated to in advance."  It is a biblical concept isn't it.  Lets not forget that God has a plan and that plan includes you.  He has a purpose for your life.  But in God's way of doing things there is another biblical concept, Man's free will.

God gives us a choice.  We have the choice to obey or disobey.  We can work with Him or against Him.  We can choose to fulfill our destiny, His plan, or in sinful arrogance do our thing, fulfill our desires.

Be faithful and fulfill your destiny, God's plan.  You are not where you are by accident.  You are there on purpose and God has a plan to use you.  Just consider, you may be where you are, "for such a time as this."

God's Will

Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

Romans 12:2 (HCSB)

A Vessel for His use

"perhaps you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this.”

Esth 4:14 (HCSB)

Queen Esther was more than just a pretty face.  She was a vessel for God's use!  There is no way we can know why God has placed us where we are until we hear His call to action.  You are not where you are by accident.  God does not place us in our positions of life just because He wants to bless us.  We have this notion that we are in a favorable place because we have earned it or because God just really loves us.  He does loves us but you are where you are because God want to use you.  There will come a time when God will clearly speak to you and call you to action. Will you be ready?  Will you be obedient?

Be ready to respond to Him, in His time and for His purpose!

Legacy

Hezekiah trusted in the Lord God of Israel; not one of the kings of Judah was like him, either before him or after him. 6 He held fast to the Lord and did not turn from following Him but kept the commandments the Lord had commanded Moses. 7 The Lord was with him, and wherever he went, he prospered.

2 Kings 18:5-7 (HCSB)

King Hezekiah had a reputation! It was a spiritual reputation. No other King of Judah was like him. He had a spiritual legacy that lasted the test of time. Honestly, I think we all want to have some kind of legacy, it is Human nature. We want what we do to having a lasting affect. We want our name to be remembered for something. Hezekiah was remembered for all the right reasons.

The Scripture tells us he held onto the Lord (he clung to Him), he followed God and he followed His word. He remained faithful to God and God was with him and prospered him.

Christ follower, what will your legacy be? Will you be remembered because you clung to the Lord, followed in His ways and obeyed His Word? There are so many poor examples to follow it is really good to see a good one.

What will your legacy be?

Predestined

I chose you before I formed you in the womb; I set you apart before you were born. I appointed you a prophet to the nations.

Jer 1:5 (HCSB)

God is not a spur of the moment God. His direction for us are not on a whim. I am amazed as a pastor when I hear people say wow that message spoke to exactly what is happening in my life. I am wowed when I see how appropriate a sermon can be to someones situation. Now the amazing thing is that while some may think I am "preaching at them" the truth is that I plan my sermons out 6 months to a year ahead of the sermon date. God is truly an amazing God.

Now how does that all apply to you and me right now? Well God has called you. He has appointed you. He has a specific plan for you that He has "predestined" (don't get stuck on this word!) for you. Remember He is not a spur of the moment God. He is more than a sermon planning God. He is a God who has a plan for you as His follower in His Kingdom to impact His world. Jeremiah speaks of this and is wowed! Before you were formed in your mother's womb God knew you. He appointed you. He had a plan and purpose for you.

There are days we might loose sight of this but be reminded. What God is calling you too is not a whim but a predestined plan for your purpose and His glory. Serve Him today with all your heart!

What do you know?

Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and wondrous things you do not know.

Jer 33:3 (HCSB)

We all face times when we wonder, "what next?" There seems to be an ever constant quest for the Christ follower to determine God's will. There are many things we could say about that quest. But Jeremiah 33.3 says this one thing. If you call you will find me. If you find me I will tell you wonderful things.

God is a good God! And while not every experience we encounter we would describe as good. A good God is still in control. He has a plan and if we trust Him we will experience wonderful truths. Again we may not always experience wonderful things but we will see wonderful truths that will guide us in this life.

Call! Find! See!

Trust Him

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding;

Prov 3:5 (HCSB)

Don't you wish that life always made sense? I do. There is a lesson I have learned over the years that God's plan and what He calls the Christ Follower to do does not always make "common sense". If we try to make all that God has us do fit our mold we will be very dissatisfied with God. From our point of view God doesn't always make sense.

So the writer of Proverbs has a very important message that I can sum up simply as, "Trust God not your understanding of things." We must trust God and know that His ways are always best. The Bible is full of examples of God doing things differently than our Human common sense says they should be done. In fact I think God rather enjoys confounding our understanding.

So don't rely on "common sense" but rather seek out "God sense" and trust Him with your life!

Looking Forward

Let your eyes look forward;fix your gaze straight ahead.26 Carefully consider the path for your feet,and all your ways will be established. 27 Don’t turn to the right or to the left; keep your feet away from evil.

Prov 4:25-27 (HCSB)

When we are looking for God's direction for our life, sometimes the worst thing we can do is to look around. the Proverbs writers advise is to look straight ahead don't turn from the right or to the left. He warns that we should carefully consider the path for our feet. Sometimes to many options also mean to many temptation. Seek His path and pay attention to it alone. Don't consider what your missing out on. Because the truth is that your not missing our on anything if God is calling you .

Don't Laugh

10 The Lord said, “I will certainly come back to you in about a year’s time, and your wife Sarah will have a son!” Now Sarah was listening at the entrance of the tent behind him.11 Abraham and Sarah were old and getting on in years. Sarah had passed the age of childbearing. 12 So she laughed to herself: “After I have become shriveled up and my lord is old, will I have delight?”

Gen 18:10-12 (HCSB)

Have you ever laughed when God makes a promise or you hear His call for your life? Sarah did! In her old age God promised she would have a child. This was physically speaking an impossibility. But we fortunately serve a God who is known for doing the impossible. God says, "Sarah will have a child." Guess what happens. You got it she had a child. Nothing is impossible with God.

Now why did Sarah laugh? Well certainly she doubted. But let me suggest there may be more. I am sure, based on the Scripture itself, that Sarah said come on is that possible? But perhaps there was also a giggle that surfaced because of the prospect of a miracle. Maybe she looked at old Abe and herself and thought wouldn't that be funny. Maybe for just a second she reverted back to a giddy school girl hoping for the impossible that she had been waiting for all her life, and a little laugh erupted.

Now what about us? When God calls, when He says this is what I want to do through you, will you doubt. Will you say wow that's impossible but wouldn't it be cool when God pulls it off. Will it bring in you a chuckle to see how God will bring about a miracle when He does in your life what only he could do.

Go ahead, laugh, I think God loves to show us the impossible made possible through a great and powerful God!