When the Father Says "Wait"

I am in a season of life I never wanted. On your wedding day, you say the words "until death do us part." But you hope it won't happen until you've spent many years together and you are old and gray.

I have had much turmoil in my heart as I have fought with God for answers. I've asked all the questions. "Why? Is this my fault? Did I do something wrong? Are You punishing me? Why are You angry with me? Why are all of these other couples growing old together, and I have lost my husband?" I've been angry. I hate to admit, there have been periods of time I would hardly speak to my Father. But He held onto me. He didn't give me answers. But He lovingly and gently brought me back.

From the beginning of this season, a word I have continually heard in my spirit is, "Wait." I sensed that everything I did, every decision I made, God wanted me to take my time, not rush. And I have had many decisions to make. So I have endeavored to remain calm and take one step at a time.

Even though God spoke to me, and I knew He had His hand on me, at the same time I have been unsettled, agitated, worried; because if you have a good marriage to a man you love and then you lose him, you don't want to be alone. And while grieving for Wayne, I have been taunted and haunted by thoughts of spending the rest of my life alone and wondering what the future holds. But God is gracious, and He has helped me--through His Word, through the advice of friends, and through books, songs, sermons and prayers--to gain a measure of peace. He has spoken to my storm and calmed me. I finally came to a point of surrender where I could honestly say, "Lord, not my will, but Yours be done. I want to be an instrument in Your Hands. I want to live my life as You would have me to, doing what You have placed in my heart to do. And I will follow Your plan whatever that is." It is tremendously freeing to finally come to that place.

I know there are still rough days ahead. I also know that God my Father cares. And He is still speaking to me, "Wait." He wants me to wait while He works in my heart and prepares me for the next season. So, I will continue in this season of waiting. 

Lord, I submit to the working of Your Spirit. Do a work in me that only You can do.

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Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord! (Psalm 27:14, NKJV)

Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. (Psalm 33:20, NKJV)

But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31, NKJV)

God Finishes What He Starts

Do you have half-finished projects in your life? Those things that you started with such enthusiasm, and for whatever reason somewhere along the way you lost your drive to bring to completion. I believe we have all been in that situation. It can be disheartening to see something you started that you were excited about, but then for some reason you just didn’t follow through. Maybe you got busy with something else, some other project distracted you, and you left thinking “I’ll get back to this later.” And then you never did.

I am so thankful that when God works on the “project” of our lives He doesn’t stop before it is finished. Philippians 1:6 tells us, “. . . he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” That is such an encouraging verse! When you feel that your life is just not the way you want it to be, remember that as long as you are living for Him, God is working on you. He has a plan. He wants you to seek His face and find out what that plan is. And He wants to complete it. I love the children’s song, He’s still working on me to make me what I ought to be. It took Him just a week to make the moon and the stars, the sun and the earth and Jupiter and Mars. How loving and patient He must be. He’s still working on me.*

So, be encouraged! If you haven’t already done so, submit your life to God. If you have, but you’ve gotten distracted, get back on track and ask God to show you what He wants for your life. Tell Him you want Him in the driver’s seat. I believe you will be amazed at the work He will complete in your life!

*He’s Still Working On Me, Joel Hemphill

Copying the Master

Recently at work I received a request to send out an application for one of our ministry training programs. When I opened the file in which I keep the forms, I had only one left—the original. To keep me from sending my original form, I had attached at the front of it a note on which I had written the word “Master.” When I saw the note, I was reminded that the Word tells us Jesus is our Master.  I was using the master form to make a copy, and we are to be “copies” of the Master.

Just as a copy printed from a copy machine will never be the quality of the original, in our humanity we can never be exactly like Jesus. But the Word instructs us that we are to endeavor to be like Him. Oh, how different life would be if all of us who are believers would live as a copy of Jesus in this world! That is the reason we are left here after salvation. We are Christ’s representatives on this earth living to do His work and accomplish His will.

WWJD bracelets have been popular among believers. These initials represent the question, “What Would Jesus Do?” In every circumstance of our lives, these are the questions we need to ask ourselves: “What would Jesus do? How would He respond? What attitude would He have? What action would He take?” And then we are to behave in the same manner. Everything Jesus did while on this earth He did from the motivation of love. We as His followers are to do the same. Our actions should always show forth the love of Christ.

Jesus came to this earth to love and to give. He loved humanity enough to give His life. He is asking us to also love humanity and to give ourselves to the task of bringing as many as we can to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ!
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And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father. (Colossians 3:17, NLT)

Rest For Our Souls

My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken. (Psalm 62:1-2, NIV)

My family just came back from our summer vacation. It was an enjoyable time spent away from our normal, daily routine. It was great to “get away from it all” and relax with family, and not think about responsibilities waiting back at home.

The last couple of months leading up to our vacation were very busy for me, and many times during those months, I encountered the above scripture. My soul finds rest in God alone. I came across it so many times and in so many ways that I knew God wanted my attention focused on that scripture.

My soul finds rest in God alone. It is calming just to hear those words. We can find temporary rest by going on a vacation, but the rest of the year is filled with many activities and sometimes overwhelming responsibilities. During those times, we can find rest by going to God alone.

When the cares of life threaten to destroy us, it is wonderful that we can go to our Father and find rest. Our salvation, our deliverance comes from Him.

Instead of trying to figure out the answers to all of life’s problems yourself, go to the One who has the answers and find rest for your soul in Him.

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Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:29-30)

Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. (1 Peter 5:7)

Our Daily Choice

All of us who are believers can look back to a specific time in our life when we made the choice to accept Jesus Christ as our Savior. But being a follower of Christ is a daily decision. Joshua told the children of Israel, “Choose you this day whom you will serve . . .” (Joshua 24:15).

Every day when I wake up, I have a choice to make: Will I live for God, or will I live for myself? Our natural tendencies would lead us to live selfish lives, doing what pleases our flesh. There are many distractions—so many ways our enemy uses to pull us away from doing what is right. Choosing to please the Lord in our daily walk takes a conscious decision. And it is only when we choose to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit that we are able to please our Father.

Because we live such busy lives, it is easy to get up each morning and “hit the ground running,” without taking the time to fellowship with the Lord and get His direction for the day.

How much better our days are when we take a few moments to consciously decide, “Today, I will follow Jesus.” Joshua said it best, “. . . as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15).

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And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. (Luke 9:23)

A Heart for the Outcast

This post is written by my brother David.

I was talking with a teen from church one day during this past school year. He was telling me of recent events for him at school and how he gets picked on a lot for his medical disabilities and some of his learning issues. Through a course of events he ended up in ISS (in school suspension).

He told me of that experience and how he really did not like being inside the closed-in cubicle all day. However, he also said, “…but you know what…I kinda liked it…..no one picked on me today.”

I get tears in my eyes every time I think about how miserable that must be. For him to live day by day and actually prefer to sit in a claustrophobic box rather than deal with the outside pressures of such condescending cruelty. A well-known and often-quoted scripture is John 3:16, For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. But do we really in our hearts believe and accept ‘whosoever’? Or do we ourselves look down upon others because of their race, handicaps, social status, family history, past sins, or any other thing that makes us feel we are better than THAT person.

I pray we can all receive the heart of God for the lonely and the destitute around us.

They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, YOU DID NOT DO FOR ME.’  (Matthew 25:44-45 NIV, emphasis added.)

Mother: A Woman of Influence, Part 4

This is the final in my series of articles about mothers becoming women of godly influence.

It burdens my heart that some women seem to think they have found a better way, that without God they can successfully raise their children. Some women have become so “sophisticated,” so haughty because of their blessings that they feel they have need of nothing. But Revelation 3:17 reveals to us that when we think we “have it made” and have everything we need, without God we really have nothing: “Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked”

We need Him! We need the Lord’s help! And the most important lesson we can teach our children is: They need the Lord! Not that they need a job making a lot of money, not worldly prestige—although these things are fine if they are serving the Lord. But it is most important that they become a success in God’s eyes. It is imperative for them to seek God’s face and learn His will for their lives.  Otherwise they can flounder for years in the wrong profession, or in the wrong way of life, unhappy and confused!

Example of a Mother Who Exercised Godly Influence:  Moses’ mother, Jochebed

In Exodus chapter 2, we find the account of Moses whose mother hid him for three months when Pharoah had said the Hebrew babies were to be killed; then she placed him in a basket at the edge of the river, and he was found by the daughter of Pharoah. 

Even though he was raised by Pharoah’s daughter, Moses’ real mother was given the privilege of nursing him when he was young, possibly until he was five years old, and during that time she was able to instill in Him the importance of loving the Lord and living to please Him.

When he grew up, he chose to live as a Hebrew, rather than a privileged life as Pharoah’s grandson. “By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.  (Hebrews 11:24-27)

"Really examine this passage. See all that it reveals. As a result of the few early years of training that Moses had before he was five years old, when he grew up, he…knew who the people of God were --- knew that while sin offers pleasure it only lasts ‘for a season’ --- knew and believed about the coming Messiah (Christ) --- correctly evaluated that heavenly rewards are of greater value than earthly treasures --- knew that the invisible God could protect him from the anger of an all-powerful earthly king --- and had the character to do what was right no matter what it cost him."  —Dr. John Stormer

The early influence of Moses’ mother helped him to make the decision to serve the Lord later in life.  He truly was a success in God’s eyes, and so was his mother! I want to be that kind of success as a mother. The most important thing to me concerning my child is that she lives for the Lord, and that we spend eternity together in His presence.