HACKED BY NESAS_0DAY

Tag: Waiting

Trusting the Promises of God (Part 2/2)

Series: Don’t waste your waiting.

During a season of prolonged illness in my own life, I got to a place where I wondered if I’d ever be healthy again. Discouragement and depression set in. However, my turning point came when I actively searched Scripture and started memorising God’s promises as if my life depended on them. As I spoke these promises of God’s faithfulness out loud, praying them back to God and believing them for my own circumstances, the thick cloud of despair was gradually replaced by a cocoon of hope and trust. Unlike us, God never makes a promise that He doesn’t keep. His promises are dependable and true, because they are founded on His unchangeable attributes and sovereign power. God cannot lie.

In part 1, we saw that God’s promises are rooted in the salvation which Jesus achieved for His people in His life, death, and resurrection. The apostle Paul wrote to the Christians at Corinth, “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God” (2 Cor 1:20). The whole New Testament affirms that Jesus is the Promised One of the Old Testament (Luke 24:25-27). Since Jesus is the fulfilment of all God’s promises to His people, we need to understand and trust those promises through the lens of the cross.

Ten Promises you can bank on.

One of the greatest treasury of God’s promises is found in Romans 8. I have crystallised ten promises from this chapter. Read the chapter on your own as we record, personalise, and believe God’s promises together.

# 1. God has declared me “not guilty”!

I am forgiven, not condemned (Rom 8:1) God declares this verdict, not me. I can trust this promise because Christ’s perfect sacrifice on the cross has turned away God’s wrath for all who have repented and believed in Him. It has nothing to do with me! This means that I can get off the performance treadmill because justification is a once-for-all time event and entirely God’s work. However bad my day may be, however unworthy I may feel, whatever accusers may throw at me, my sin has been fully paid for. Jesus, my righteous advocate, speaks forgiveness and acceptance, not accusation and shame. “Not guilty” is God’s Truth, not just ‘my truth’.

# 2. God has set me free from the bondage of sin and death!

I am now under new management, no longer ruled by the selfishness of Adam, but by the Spirit of God (Rom 8:5-11). “Free” is my permanent status. Although I still sin, I’m no longer helplessly in its grip. I’m no longer a slave to my sinful nature (Rom 8:2-4). This promise matters, because it assures me that I have been redeemed from sin’s power and penalty. Therefore, I can put off sin and put on a life of righteousness (Rom 8:13). My previous Master’s wages were death (Rom 8:6a) but my new Master’s wages are life and peace (Rom 8:6b). I am not the person I once was. I am slowly changing day-by-day.

# 3. God’s Spirit lives in me to sanctify me.

This promise matters, because I know that I cannot conquer sin on my own, but the Holy Spirit empowers me to live a fruitful and faithful Christian life, which pleases God (Rom 8:2-3; 9-11). Like a new navigation system, the Holy Spirit helps me to think, speak and act as Christ directs (Rom 8:5). Like a skilled surgeon, the Spirit enables me to surgically remove every sin that resists Christ’s lordship (Rom 8:12-14). Without the Holy Spirit leading me, I would have no desire nor power to conquer sin. Without Him, I would be on a trajectory of death. But because He lives in me, I am on the side of life (Rom 8:13).

# 4. The Holy Spirit is a foretaste of heaven.

The Spirit who breathed spiritual life into my dead soul and raised Jesus from the dead will surely do for me what He did for Jesus! He will give me a glorious new body on the Resurrection Day that has been promised to the living and the dead (Rom 8:11). I will rise to sin no more. Having tasted heaven, I long for the feast, but the hors d’oeuvres is the guarantee that the feast is going to follow.

When I don’t have the right words or strength to pray, God promises that the Spirit will pray with me and for me, according to His will (Rom 8:26-27). So when I bring my requests to God, I can be sure that He will always do what is best. What blessed assurance the Holy Spirit gives me!

#5. I am God’s adopted child.

This promise means that I’m no longer a cringing, fearful slave seeking to impress or appease God with my performance (Rom 8:14-17). I can give up on virtue-signalling. Fear-based religion has given way to faithful relationship with a good Father. I’m in line for all His treasures and can approach Him as Abba, daddy. I have all the privileges and responsibilities of a legitimate child in His family. One of these privileges is the Holy Spirit, who reminds me daily of who and whose I am. The Holy Spirit is my inner witness who signed my adoption order and assures me of my Father’s love.

#6. Present sufferings are a prelude to glory.

God promises that present suffering is a price for being identified with Jesus (Rom 8:17). It can also be traced back to the Fall, because “we know that all creation has been subjected to frustration because of the sin of Adam” (Rom 8:20). But we will share in Christ’s glory too! (Rom 8:17-18) The two are not even comparable. “Our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.”

If I truly believe this promise, I cannot be complacent or discouraged. When I face trials or pressures to conform to the world, I am assured that glory is not just a place to which I go, but also a condition that is being revealed in me. My transformed body awaits me, but so does the perfection of my character, so that Christ will be admired and glorified in those who trust Him.

#7. The curse will be lifted!

God has promised that better things lie ahead. In my lifetime, I have never seen such physical, emotional, financial, social and relational suffering in people. For many, hope is lost. But when brokenness is all around, a believer’s anchor is the promise of final redemption, a day when God’s children are openly announced and the curse of sin is finally lifted. My hope is the climax and completion of my salvation. Sin and suffering will be replaced by glory! (Rom 8:19-25)

Paul says, “For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has?” (Romans 8:24).

Hope is not an optimistic wish for utopia, but the absolute certainty of our promised home where there is safety, peace, and plenty for all God’s people. Sin will never enter its gates. “The glory and honour of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life” (Rev 21:27). No longer will there be any curse. This promise is confirmed throughout the Bible (Rev 22:1-5; Isaiah 65:17-25; 2 Peter 3:1-10; Matt 24:29-31; Rev 21:1-4).

Until this promise of redemption is fulfilled, creation groans to be free, like a woman in labour longs to give birth (Romans 8:19-22). We groan too (Rom 8:23). The whole creation yearns for deliverance when all our longings will be met in the new heavens and new earth, the home of righteousness.

#8. All things are working together for good!

Romans 8:28-30 is probably the most cherished biblical promise for good reason. God promises that without exception, He is working all things together for the good of His people and for His glory. All things are not just some things. What does this promise mean?

It means that the sovereign God who subjected creation to frustration still rules over it– pain, mistakes and evil included. God is in control of all nations, shaping events and decisions to fulfil his will. God is working in the hearts of people and leaders to move them to fulfil his purposes. Even the weather and laws of nature are operating according to God’s direct will. Good or bad, everything is part of God’s plan for us, to conform us to the likeness of Christ, our elder brother in the great family of God. All who love God are included in this promise.

This sweeping promise assures me that God never wastes pain. He uses all things to accomplish His purpose, for His glory and my welfare. Therefore, I can trust Him even when my heart is broken or my body is racked with pain. I can always trust Him in all things.

This monumental promise is all of grace. Not everyone has been foreknown by God in an intimate and loving way. But everyone who has been called by the gospel has been justified and glorified (Rom 8:29-30). It’s all in the past tense, so it’s as good as done. Not one person on whom God has set His love will fail to arrive in heaven. If this promise doesn’t move us to worship, nothing will.

#9. God is for us!

Are there any four words that move you to gratitude more than these? No “trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword” can alter the promise that God is for his people and will not hold back anything from us (Rom 8:32). “He will freely give us all things”. (Rom 8:31-39). No if’s, but’s or maybe’s.

No enemy or circumstance can breach this promise. If God delivered up the greatest gift of His own Son for me, how can I doubt that He will give me the grace, courage, strength, wisdom and steadfastness to live through my present trials? My faithful God will hold me fast.

Promise #10. God loves us!

Are there any three words more triumphant and affirming than these? (Rom 8:31-39). Who is going to condemn those for whom God’s Son has died? (Rom 8:34) God’s love is an unfailing and unconquerable love. It is especially precious to His own who suffer as sheep for the slaughter (Rom 8:36). No disaster or unseen forces of evil can separate us from God’s embrace or divert our path to heaven. None can cut us off from the presence of Jesus, whose nail-pierced hands and feet prove His Father’s great love for us. Not even death can sever this cord of divine love. Nothing can diminish God’s love for us because he has loved us in Christ Jesus from eternity. If I believe this great love is true, how can I ever be afraid?

I pray that these ten great and precious promises will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus as you live out the Christian life. Write them down, meditate on them, memorise them, pray them back to God, so that you will be anchored by God’s sure and precious promises in the waiting room, before you see Him face to face.

Prayer

I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits,
    and in his word I put my hope.
I wait for the Lord
    more than watchmen wait for the morning,
    more than watchmen wait for the morning. (Psalm 130:5-6). Amen.

May 3, 2024
Trusting God’s Promises in the Eye of the Storm (Part 1/2)

Series: Don’t waste your waiting

“The Lord is faithful to all his promises and loving to all he has made. The Lord upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down” (Psalm 145:13).

Unlike us, God never makes a promise that He doesn’t keep. His promises are always dependable and true, because they are founded on his unchangeable character, moral perfection and sovereign power. God cannot lie. His promises are like a secure anchor for believers, providing security and stability even when circumstances are hard and hopeless. In contrast, false promises are disappointing no matter how firmly one believes them. They are like eating soup with a fork. You get a taste but no satisfaction.

False promises.

It makes me sad when sincere Christians cling for dear life to ‘promises’ that God has not made to them, instead of clinging to God’s Word which is always trustworthy. One woman told me that thirty years ago a man of God had prophesied over her and her husband. According to this alleged prophet, God had promised them that her husband would rise to become a prominent businessman, “a king among men,” a “leader in Christ’s kingdom.” He would have a mighty ministry.

In reality, the man spent his working life earning a modest salary before being retrenched in his late fifties. He struggled just to make ends meet. He was not a successful evangelist or ministry leader by any stretch of the imagination, just a faithful husband, father, and friend. However, he and his wife remained ever hopeful that their “big breakthrough” was just around the corner. Sadly, disappointment set in because they lived their lives based on a false promise.

In Leviticus, God warns his covenant people, “You shall not swear falsely by my name and so profane the name of your God. I am the Lord.” (Lev 19:12). In their casual promises of healing and success, false teachers are no better than the false prophets of Jeremiah’s day, “prophesying false visions, divinations, idolatries and the delusions of their own minds” (Jer 14:14). God takes it seriously when people put words into his mouth, especially false promises.

Many false prophets also claim that they’ve deciphered God’s word in such a way that they can match their Bible with people’s destinies or world affairs. They pluck verses out of context, scattering them like confetti. This causes Christians to put their trust in some other place than Jesus and his Word.

In the New Testament, the word ‘hope’ does not mean a sincere wish, but an absolute certainty. Unlike false promises, God’s promises have a 100% fulfillment rate. There are three distinguishing marks of God’s promises in the Bible.

Three marks of God’s promises.

Firstly, God’s promises bring about hope, perseverance and sanctification in the life of a Christian. God’s promises are never about our earthly glory or greatness, but about our godliness and growth, especially during suffering. God’s promises are not carnal. Like the persecuted Christians of the first century, we need to trust God’s “very great and precious promises” daily, as we seek to live a godly life connected to Christ.

To the scattered Christians all over the Greco-Roman world Peter writes,

“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. ⁴Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” (1 Peter 1:3-4).

Secondly, God’s promises are all about Him, not us! They are about God’s character and the wonderful things that He has done. They are based on His attributes, power, and glory, shown through mighty acts on behalf of His people. They are God-centric promises, not man-centric.

Thirdly, God’s promises are anchored by the salvation which Jesus achieved for His people in His life, death, and resurrection. Christ is the thread woven through all God’s Old Testament promises (Isa 53; Isa 49:6; Gen 3:15; Gen 12:3). As Psalm 22 records, “They will proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn—for he has done it!” (Ps 22:31). Jesus is the Promised One of the Old Testament (Luke 24:25-27; 2 Cor 1:20). He is the anchor of all God’s promises to His people.

Applying God’s promises.

How can we go about trusting in God’s promises in our daily lives? There is no shortcut or hotline to heaven. We cannot read little bits of Scripture and take away inspirational promises. We must humbly submit to God’s Word daily and study it in context to understand the big picture of what God has done and is doing in the world. Since Jesus is the fulfilment of all God’s promises, we need to read God’s promises through the lens of the cross and the resurrection.

Having said this, one of the habits that I have cultivated over the years is to write down and personalise God’s promises as I read through Scripture in my quiet time. I keep those promises in a box, to meditate on, memorise, and pray over so that I become an effectual doer of the Word and not a forgetful hearer (James 1:22-25). I want to stake my life on God’s sure promises and preach them to myself often, because I am prone to forget. When the waves of adversity break over my head and I am in the eye of the storm, I want to be anchored by God’s sure promises to His people. Christ and His Word is my only stable anchor.

Memorising Scripture may seem like an overwhelming task, but if the passage is broken down into small sections, it can be memorised fairly easily. The rewards of having a special passage hidden in your heart will be worth the effort. It will be an anchor when your sails are torn.

Every chapter of the Bible is full of God’s promises to all who have repented of their sin and trusted in the Lord Jesus, but Romans 8 is one of my favourites. Next week we will look at ten great and precious promises from Romans 8. Read the chapter on your own and join us next week as we record, personalise, and believe God’s promises together.

Listen to “Eye of the Storm”.

April 25, 2024
Walk by faith and not by sight

Series: Don’t Waste your Waiting (Part 3/4). By Rosie Moore.

“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for” (Heb 11:1).

As children, many of us learned about the wonderful process by which a caterpillar morphs into a butterfly. One day the caterpillar stops eating and hangs upside down from a twig and spins itself a silky cocoon. Within the protective casing of the chrysalis, the caterpillar transforms its body, eventually emerging as a butterfly or moth with fully developed eyes, legs, antennae, and wings.

Inside the chrysalis.

With the naked eye, we can’t see what’s happening to the moth in its season of dormancy. But if we had x-ray eyes to see inside the invisible world of the cocoon, we would be amazed at the massive disintegration of tissue and rapid cell division. A powerful metamorphosis is taking place in the unseen world, but we only see the effects when a butterfly finally emerges.

How can a follower of Christ be sure that our waiting is not wasted, but transformative instead? Hebrews 11 reminds us that God is doing far more than we can see in our difficult labours in this world. As we wait for Him, we are urged to put our faith in things not seen (Heb 11:1). Until the cocoon of this age bursts open and we finally get to see Jesus face-to-face (1 Cor 13:12), we must learn to walk by faith and not by sight (2 Cor 5:7).

Things not seen.

In 2 Corinthians 4 and 5, Paul gives suffering Christians bifocal lenses to see their ‘momentary troubles’ in the light of an eternal, invisible reality, so that they do not lose heart but are instead inspired to faithful service. Using words like ‘groan’ and ‘burdened’, Paul does not dismiss or minimize their present troubles (2 Cor 5:4). Rather, he urges them to fix their eyes on things not seen, as they eagerly await their glorified bodies and heavenly homes.

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. ¹⁷For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. ¹⁸“For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” (2 Cor 4:16-18).

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. ²Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, ³because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. ⁴For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. ⁵Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

⁶Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. ⁷For we live by faith, not by sight (2 Cor 5:6-8).

As a culture, we are obsessed with optics. But to live by faith and not by sight, we need to topple the idol of focusing on only what can be seen, felt, praised, and noticed, in the here and now. With eyes of faith, we will see that “the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus” (2 Cor 4:14). The reality of the resurrection is why Paul says “we are always confident.” Paul’s heavenly perspective changes everything.

Because of Christ’s bodily resurrection, followers of Christ are being inwardly renewed by the Holy Spirit day-by-day (2 Cor 4:16). Our sanctification is even more real and wonderful than the caterpillar’s transformation in its silky cocoon: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Cor 5:17).

As a Christian, it is easy to lose heart and quit, but Paul says effectively,

“This cocoon you’re in is not all there is! It’s just a temporary shelter, a flimsy tent. Open the flap and you’ll see a whole world out there—a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. So, don’t let fatigue, sickness, persecution, or suffering force you off the job! Don’t let your current situation cloud your lenses! There is a purpose in your labours. Your weakness is allowing the resurrection power of Jesus to strengthen you moment by moment. It is keeping you from pride. It is proving your faith to others. And as you persevere in obedience, the Holy Spirit is transforming you into the likeness of Christ! Look and see the metamorphosis taking place in the cocoon.”

A 19^th century pastor, James H Aughey once wrote: “As a weak limb grows stronger by exercise, so will your faith be strengthened by the very efforts you make in stretching it out toward things unseen.”

Troubles are a gift. They are opportunities to stretch our faith towards things unseen. Knowing that we will live forever with God in a place without sin and suffering enables us to live above the groans and burdens of this temporary tent. Death is only a prelude to eternal life with God, and we have this eternity in us now.

This is especially true for God’s children in uncertain and painful times. We will become like Jesus to the extent that we focus on the unseen person of Christ and his resurrection power to transform our lives. After all, didn’t God unleash the greatest blessing the world has ever known when Jesus was raised from the dead?

No bumper sticker faith.

“Walk by faith and not by sight” may sound like a bumper sticker for those living a life sheltered from pain, trauma, and loss. But nothing is further from the truth. This is no platitude.

A friend of mine with cancer is stretching out her faith towards the unseen truths of the gospel, as she trudges through the anguish of chemotherapy, surgery, radiation, and an uncertain future. Despite her suffering, she is walking in the faithful confidence of 2 Cor 5:6-8. Jen is a picture of ‘good courage’.

Nigeria is currently the most persecuted nation on earth. Every day a hundred million Nigerian Christians are walking by faith and not by sight, as many among them are terrorized, stripped of their livelihoods and face abduction and sexual violence. 2 Cor 4:16-18 is not a platitude, but a life and death reality.

Living by faith and not by sight is not about ignoring the difficult afflictions we endure, nor convincing ourselves of something that isn’t true. It is not about claiming fake promises of prosperity that God has not given us, nor about ‘manifesting’ a bright future for ourselves. Rather, it is about training our hearts and minds to see that our afflictions are producing for us “an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (2 Cor 4:17).

Living for the unseen is actively trusting in God’s sovereign purposes over all things for our good and his glory, even while “hard pressed, perplexed, persecuted, and struck down” (2 Cor 4:8-9, Rom 8:28). We may not see what God is doing, but we know that “the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show himself mighty on behalf of those whose heart is whole toward him” (2 Chron 16:9). “No eye has seen a God besides you, who works for those who wait for him” (Isa 64:4).

Living by faith is trusting that through the labours inside the cocoon, God is transforming his people into the likeness of Jesus, to make us fit for our eternal home (Rom 8:29; 2 Cor 5:5). He is faithful to complete this work of transformation. “The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it” (1 Thess 5:24).

When followers of Jesus actively walk by faith and not by sight, we begin to see that we can’t lose. Whether alive on earth or alive with Him in heaven, we’re in the cocoon of a God who is perfectly sovereign, infinitely wise, and always faithful. There is great victory in this certainty (2 Cor 5:8; Rom 8:37).

In just a little while.

Our motivation in the waiting room is to draw courage and patience from things unseen.

Our goal in the waiting room is to persevere in pleasing God, as we trust his faithful character and promises (2 Cor 5:9).

Our wait will surely be rewarded when we finally see Jesus face-to-face. He will come “in just a little while,” but in the meantime, the righteous will live by faith.

“The righteous will live by faith”: “You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.

³⁷For, “In just a little while,
    he who is coming will come
    and will not delay.”

³⁸“But my righteous one will live by faith.
    And I take no pleasure
    in the one who shrinks back.” (Heb 10:36-38).

Join us next week as we camp on the third step in the waiting room— “A month of promises you can depend on.”

April 5, 2024
Pray expectantly

Series: Don’t waste your waiting! (Part 2)

I waited patiently for the Lord;
    he turned to me and heard my cry. (Ps 40:1).

At this moment I am praying for several situations and people that I care about deeply. Like the Psalmist, I am waiting for the Lord and asking Him to intervene. I am not certain of the outcomes, but I do know that God does not want me to waste my waiting by becoming fretful, fearful, or impatient. Godly waiting involves persistent, expectant prayer, as well as trusting God’s answer when it isn’t the answer we long for. Even if delay appears senseless or painful, God has a purpose for everything that he allows in our lives. Waiting for the Lord is good!

In last week’s devotion, Don’t waste your waiting, we ended with three practical steps we can take in the waiting room. Today we will camp on the first step:

Pray expectantly.

Prayer is a peculiar privilege and gift that God gives to every Christian. By ‘peculiar’, I don’t mean strange, but rather distinctive and special. Some view prayer as a formal or mystical experience, whereas the Bible describes it as speaking sincerely to God, through Christ who has given us access. It is one of the wonderful blessings of our adoption into God’s family. As Jesus said, our Father is ready to give good gifts “to those who ask him” (Matt 7:11; Luke 11:11-13).

When the Lord taught his disciples to pray to God, he told them to address him saying, “Our Father in heaven” (Matt 6:9). Jesus said, “When you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.” (Matt 6:6). Prayer is not babbling or mindless repetition (Matt 6:7). We do not have to rehearse our prayers before they are perfect enough for God and others to hear, because prayer and pretentiousness do not belong in the same sentence (Matt 6:5).

God has designed prayer as an everyday “means of intimate and joyous fellowship between God and man,” a sweet communion every Christian can enjoy whether we are outgoing or shy, eloquent or faltering with words. Prayer is simply opening our hearts and speaking sincerely to God. “Prayer is the breath of the soul, the organ by which we receive Christ into our parched and withered hearts” (O’ Hallesby).

Because of the relationship with our heavenly Father, we have no need to become anxious about our daily needs, for “your Father knows that you need them” (Luke 12:29-30). What wonderful words of comfort Jesus spoke immediately afterwards: “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32).

Since God eagerly delights to share the fullness of the kingdom itself with us, it makes perfect sense to pray expectant, hopeful prayers. We can approach the throne of grace with confidence that the Creator of the universe is our heavenly Father, eager to hear our requests and bless us from his generous provision. We can pray patiently, as we wait on our powerful, wise Father to act for our ultimate good and his glory.

Devoted to prayer.

One of the most striking features of the book of Acts is the early church’s devotion to prayer (Acts 2:42). These first century believers recognised that they could not survive a single day without God’s wisdom and help (James 1:5). Hence, believers were marked by a persistent commitment to pray corporately, throwing themselves on the providential care and power of God (Acts 1:14, 24; 4:24-31).

Our needs are no different today. If a church congregation or life group does not commune with the Lord through prayer, both individually and corporately, we will be spiritually weak and apathetic. That’s why the Bible calls us to pray fervently, expectantly, constantly and without doubting (Luke 18:1; Eph 6:18; Col 4:2; 1 Thess 5:17; James 1:6-8).

Constant in prayer.

In Romans 12:12, Paul summarizes the Christian life in the soil of this troubled world: “Rejoicing in hope, patient in affliction, constant in prayer.” This is a powerful triad to orientate us in the waiting room of life.

In the context of chapter 12, the joy, hope, and patient prayers of a believer are rooted in our union with Jesus. It is only because Christ carried our sin on the cross that a believer can be constant in prayer, knowing that God hears and cares for us (Matthew 6:6-13).

Jesus himself was constant in prayer. His own dying words were prayers to his Father, “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34). “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34) “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit” (Luke 23:46). Christ prayed to his Father until his final breath.

You may be relieved to know that the Greek word translated as “constant” does not mean a 24/7 prayer marathon! Being constant simply means being faithful, persistent and persevering in prayer. Paul is calling us to be devoted and habitual in talking to God, not random or occasional.

We cannot be constant in prayer if we are a prisoner to our emotions, praying only when we feel like it. If we choose to pray to God regularly, our feelings eventually follow. Prayer will always be crowded out by noisier demands and distractions unless we plan our time and place to pray.

John Piper fleshes out Romans 12:2:

“God is, of course, available any time. And he loves to help any time. But he is dishonoured when we do not make time in our day to give him focused attention. All relationships suffer without regular focused attention. Paul is calling all of us to a life of regular, planned meetings with God in prayer in which we praise him for who he is, and thank him for what he has done, and ask him for help, and plead the cause of those we love, including the peoples of the world.”

I love the ACTS acronym I was taught as a teenager by Youth for Christ, as it guards against me-centred prayers:

A–Acknowledge God.

C–Confess your sin.

T–Thanksgiving.

S–Supplication (Ask).

When we ask, we can expect that God will answer.

Habakkuk’s expectant prayers.

In around 600BC, a prophet called Habakkuk poured out his heart to God in prayer about the intensifying evils he saw in the southern kingdom of Judah. He could not understand why a just and powerful God would allow evil people to get away with their unjust and violent crimes for so long. He was waiting for God to act and bring about justice in his nation.

“O Lord, how long shall I cry for help,

And you will not hear?

Or cry to you “Violence!”

And you will not save?” (Hab 1:2)

Habakkuk prayed to the Lord for the whole of chapter 1. Then he headed for the lookout tower to watch for an answer to his questions.

“I will stand at my watch
    and station myself on the ramparts;
I will look to see what he will say to me,
    and what answer I am to give to this complaint” (Hab 2:1).

A lookout tower is a powerful image of expectancy. It is the place where a watchman would peer into the distance, waiting and watching for whoever was approaching the city. Habakkuk knew that God alone had the answers and he wanted to be prepared to listen to His message.

In his book, Fear to Faith, Martin Lloyd Jones writes: “If we pray to God, we must expect answers to our prayers. Do we in fact, after we have prayed, continue to look to God and eagerly await the answer? Are we like this man, Habakkuk, on his watchtower, expecting it to come at any moment?”

But God’s answers to Habakkuk were not exactly what he had hoped for. The Lord says that He is raising up Babylon, an even more cruel and wicked nation, to take the faithless Israelites into captivity (Hab 1:5-6). After three long chapters of wrestling in prayer, Habakkuk chooses to rejoice in God and wait for Him to act, no matter what. He ends with a powerful prayer of surrender to a sovereign, faithful God. This is a prayer worth memorizing! It is a patient and expectant prayer.

Though the fig tree does not bud
    and there are no grapes on the vines…
¹⁸yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
    I will be joyful in God my Saviour.

¹⁹The Sovereign Lord is my strength;
    he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
    he enables me to tread on the heights (Habakkuk 3:17-19).

Wait patiently for the Lord.

In an age of distraction and instant gratification, we can learn from Habakkuk’s expectant and steadfast prayers, especially when God’s answers were different from what he hoped for.

Do we watch and wait for our prayers to be answered, or forget prayer requests at the back of a journal?

Do we trust in the wisdom of God’s answer, whether it is Yes, no, or wait?

Are we sceptical that God can and does bring good out of difficulties? We can’t receive what we don’t even believe (James 1:6-8).

When we pray, God is doing a good work within us. We may not always like or understand his answers. We may not see his answer immediately, often not for a long time. But let us remain “joyful in hope, patient in affliction, constant in prayer” even when God’s answers seem delayed. God’s timing might be slower than we’d like, but He is powerfully at work even when things seem completely out of control or hopeless.

Prayer from Psalm 40.

I waited patiently for the Lord;
he turned to me and heard my cry.
²He 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.
³He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear the Lord
and put their trust in him.

⁴Blessed is the one
who trusts in the Lord,
who does not look to the proud,
to those who turn aside to false gods.
⁵Many, Lord my God,
are the wonders you have done,
the things you planned for us.
None can compare with you;
were I to speak and tell of your deeds,
they would be too many to declare.

In Jesus’s name, Amen.

Listen to “As the Deer”, a prayer inspired by Psalm 42.

Helpful Books on Prayer:

O’ Hallesby, Prayer. 1948, IVP.

Sarah Ivill, The God who Hears: How the story of the Bible shapes our prayers. Reformation Heritage books

Phillip Yancey, Prayer: Does it make any difference?

J.C Ryle, Do you pray? Banner of Truth booklet.

James and Joel Beeke, Developing a Healthy Prayer Life. Reformation Heritage Books.

March 23, 2024
Don’t waste your waiting!
Waiting reveals whether we truly believe that God is wise and His timing is perfect. There is no crucible like the waiting room to sanctify us and make us more like Jesus, our Saviour.

But waiting on the Lord is not an easy activity for a believer. When God seems slow to act on our behalf, we may be tempted to take matters into our own hands, then look to God for his blessing. Alternatively, we may see waiting as a passive activity, like the period between writing an exam and getting the results. Fixated with the outcome we desire, we are blind to the valuable work that God is doing in us during the process of waiting.

Godly waiting requires active dependence on the Lord and obedience to Him. It’s a spiritual discipline that we must practice. If we seek God in ways that honour and please Him, the waiting room will yield many benefits for a Christian. Moreover, God will be glorified in and through our waiting.

Waiting in the Psalms.

In many heartfelt prayers, David shows us how not to waste our waiting. He teaches us to wait with hope, patience and trust, as we continue to do the things that please God.

Wait hopefully.

In Psalm 130, David cries out to God from the darkness of trouble, as he waits for the Lord to act. As a night watchman waits for a dawn that he knows is coming, the Psalmist waits confidently for God’s mercy, unfailing love and redemption. He puts his hope in the truth of God’s word, not his own feelings or his circumstances.

I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits,
    and in his word I put my hope.
⁶I wait for the Lord
    more than watchmen wait for the morning,
    more than watchmen wait for the morning (Ps 130:5-6).

Wait patiently.

In Psalm 37, David urges us to wait patiently for God’s justice, especially when we’re tempted to fret needlessly or take revenge. What should we do while we wait? Keep trusting the Lord, and do good (Ps 37:3); delight yourself in the Lord (Ps 37:4), and commit your way to the Lord (Ps 37:5).

Be still before the Lord
    and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when people succeed in their ways,
    when they carry out their wicked schemes.

⁸Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;
    do not fret—it leads only to evil.
⁹For those who are evil will be destroyed,
    but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land (Psalm 37:7-9).

Wait trustingly.

In Psalm 33, David points to the object of our faith, as we wait. Our hope is rooted in who God is– His power, kindness, faithfulness and desire to bless his children. It is a hope based on solid ground, not wishful thinking:

We wait in hope for the Lord;
    he is our help and our shield (Ps 33:20).

Benefits of the waiting room.

In contrast to instant ‘name-it, claim-it’ theology, the Bible describes many benefits of waiting that a Christian can embrace.

The dependence of the waiting room will grow our prayer life, as we replace worry with trusting, thankful prayers (Phil 4:6). In a period of forced inaction and uncertainty, our hearts are quietened before a sovereign, wise and caring God. We learn to humble ourselves under the mighty power of God and cast all our cares on Him, waiting for him to lift us up at the right time (1 Peter 5:6-7). It is the place where we may experience God’s peace which exceeds anything we can understand (Phil 4:7).

The desperation of the waiting room dares us to ask for great things in prayer, as Elijah did (James 5:17-18). But it is also the place where we become a living, breathing example of the phrase, “If the Lord wills” (James 4:13-16). Christ Himself showed us what this humble submission looks like in the waiting room of Gethsemane (Luke 22:42).

Many years of waiting honed the perseverance, character and hope of a long line of Biblical heroes, including David, Moses, Job, Joseph, Paul, Esther, Hannah, Ruth, Abraham, Jeremiah, Mary, Daniel, Noah, Anna, Simeon and many others. Paul writes,

“And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us” (Rom 5:4-6). It is in the hard process of waiting that we begin to know the Father’s love in a unique way.

Tests of the waiting room.

Of course, as in the case of all affliction, waiting doesn’t always produce good fruit in a believer. Waiting was one of the greatest tests that Abram and Sarai had to face after God promised them a son in their old age. But, instead of being willing to let God work in His own timing, Sarai suggested a sinful, wilful solution, and Abram agreed. Instead of waiting on the Lord, Sarah took matters into her own hands by offering her maidservant to Abram to produce a baby (Gen 16:1-2). Through her manipulation, she made herself God. The result was confusion, contention and division.

And so, if our attitude to waiting is self-directed and presumptuous, we will be like the self- confident man whom James describes, intent on bringing his own plans to pass without taking God into account. His egotistical plans are described as “arrogant schemes” and “evil boasting”:

Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” ¹⁴Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. ¹⁵Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” ¹⁶As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil (James 4:13-16).

Your own waiting room.

In this season of your life, you may be waiting for God to restore justice, for crucial test results, or healing after many months of distress. You may be waiting for a spouse or a job offer after sending your CV to every contact you can think of. Or you may be waiting for God to save a loved one, restore a precious relationship, or turn your finances around. All the while, you are praying fervently for God to act.

But God does not want us to waste our waiting. Godly waiting involves staying the course of faith even when we can’t see the hand of God at work (Heb 10:36-39). It involves resting in the Lord today, as we wait quietly for his daily mercies and compassions (Ps 62:5-6; Lam 3:25-26). It requires us to take one day at a time, and not borrow tomorrow’s trouble (Matt 6:34). And it also requires us to accept God’s answer when it isn’t the answer we long for.

Fruitful waiting involves being faithful now in what God has called us to, even in small things such as work, singleness, taking care of children, undergoing treatment, or making every effort to find a job. Godly waiting involves obeying God’s Word and living holy lives, as we grow in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and wait for the world’s final redemption (2 Peter 3:14, 17-18).

After all, every Christian is waiting for Christ to return and for all wrongs to be made right (Rom 8:24-25). Every day we’re alive is a waiting room of faithful stewardship that Christ has entrusted to us (Matt 25:23; 1 Cor 4:2).

How can a follower of Christ ensure that our waiting is not wasted, but fruitful instead? Since most of us are action people and don’t like to stand still for long, here are some biblical steps we can take while in the waiting room—
1. Pray expectantly.
2. Walk by faith, not by sight.
3. Trust in the promises of God.
Join us in the next week as we explore these three steps.

Prayer.

Lord, we acknowledge that y0u are sovereign over all circumstances, and perfectly wise in your timing too. Thank you that Jesus is our High Priest who understands our weaknesses, for He faced all the same testings we do, yet He did not sin. And so, we approach your throne of grace with confidence. We humble ourselves under your mighty power, knowing that you will lift us up at the right time. We give you all our worries and cares, because you care for us. Help us to use our waiting well by holding firmly to what we believe and by finding rest in you alone. We do not lean on our own understanding, but trust you with all our heart and acknowledge you in all our ways. Whatever the outcome, we know that you will make our paths straight. In Jesus’ name.

(Prayer based on Heb 4:14-16; 1 Peter 5:6-7; Matt 11:28; Prov 3:5-6).
March 18, 2024