Someone once told me, “I don’t wait. I’m good at making things happen.” There comes a time in life, when God sits back and allows us to weave and coerce our lives and those around us for as long as we choose. So as a result, what may appear to be good that comes in our lives, really isn’t the good that comes from God. If you’ve experienced this you know what I mean. All who serve God can attest to these words, both the good and the bad.

Waiting wrongly. When we are determined to set out on our own and “makes things happen” we surely do. We humans do extremely well at making things happen. So much, that we can make a terrible mess. Sadly, we not only wreak havoc for ourselves but the lives of those we include in our self-made happenings. If you haven’t learned this lesson then the pain hasn’t been great enough. Greater pain awaits you still.

It is a delicate thing concerning waiting. We have to be able to discern what is waiting wrongly and waiting well. Do we remain lifeless and idle, or living and active?  How does it look in the life of a believer following Christ?

Genesis 15 – 21 is the story of the promised son Isaac. God had promised Abram and his wife Sarai a child. However, unbeknown to them the child would come in their older age. In Genesis chapter 15 we see the story unfold where God promised Abram an heir from his own body. However, in chapter 16 something happened that set things on a different course. Abram’s wife Sarai took matters into her own hands and decided to use Hagar, her Egyptian maidservant, as the surrogate to conceive the child with her husband Abram. Things got worse when Hagar became pregnant and then mistreated her mistress Sarai, mocking her. No doubt Hagar must have felt elevated in status to Sarai, after all, she bore Abram the son Sarai could not. How devastating to Sarai to witness the consequences of her hand, along with Abram’s consent. In what appears to be an effort by Abram to restore to Sarai her status and thus putting Hagar in her place as a servant, he stated (Gen 16: 5) “Behold, your maid is in your power; do to her what is good in our sight.” Sarai feeling the tension of the consequences by her own hand retaliated against Hagar who fled, but the Lord God had her return to submit to Sarai’s authority. More importantly, Hagar bore Abram a son named Ishmael which is a Semetic name meaning “God hears.”  The boy’s name an attestation of God hearing Hagar’s lamenting her affliction. God had a reason for Hagar to remain in the household. In verses 7 – 13 we see God’s divine intervention in Hagar’s life. She was sent back with instruction from God and an obvious faith experience  she needed in order to remain and live as a servant.

Meanwhile, between chapters 17 – 18 God renamed Abram to Abraham, Sarai to Sarah, and reminded Abraham of the covenantal blessings, as well as his future son Isaac to be born the following year. Thirteen years passed when the time came that Ishmael, Abraham and the men of his household were circumcised. Here, the progression of time has taken place and the details were much clearer with a timeframe given for the birth of Isaac.  Thirteen years is a long time to face the consequence of human impulses and persuasions rather than the faithful provision of God. Sarai, Hagar, and Ishmael had to learn to live together. Abraham was Ishmael’s father too. The years had to weigh on Sarah of her decision to arrange her life without waiting for God. The daily reminders had to set in at some point. It must have been painful for all involved. Finally, in chapter 21 the birth of the promised son Isaac takes place. Verse 2 states “So Sarah conceived and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the appointed time of which God had spoken to him.”

However, the consequences of waiting wrongly still lingered when Sarah once again turned against her maidservant Hagar, as well as the boy Ishmael for mocking, and had driven them out of the household for good. Interesting how it was Ishmael mocking. We don’t know whether he was mocking the baby Isaac or Sarah. Nonetheless, the threat, whether real or perceived was too much for Sarah, that she had Abraham send them out to the wilderness. The relationship was still in discord. We don’t know fully whether all lessons were learned in the thirteen years that passed. Hagar was caught up in the tangled web of Abraham and Sarah and so was Ishmael. Though Isaac was the promised child of God, Ishmael and his mother Hagar received blessings along the way.

Divine intervention came for Abraham and Sarah despite their waiting wrongly and impatiently taking matters into their own hands. It is not always the case for the rest of us. We cannot always expect to be rescued, especially without consequences. The length of waiting often represents the change required in us to guarantee the ultimate result. This time there could be no turning back to old thoughts or old ways. The renewal had to result in behavior aligned to God’s will to ultimately manifest in His will for the world. Did Abraham and Sarah understand the promise?  Could they have understood the magnitude of it to this day in time? Sometimes the heavy length of waiting is for the deeper purposes of God that is beyond our comprehension.

It is not our business to know everything concerning the matters of God in our lives or the lives of others. When left up to us we get it wrong most of the time. We read our human thoughts, experiences, and influences into such matters that we end up being led falsely by ourselves rather than by the One True God. We are not omniscient like God. It is the prerogative of the Father to keep things to Himself. Our focus should be obedience and faithfulness to Him.

Throughout the narrative of Abraham and Sarah age did not matter to God. In fact, it was of little concern. It was all about God’s timing, and Abraham and Sarah’s waiting.

Here are a few characteristics that cause us to wait wrongly:

• Impatience: we choose too quickly too soon. We lose our perspective of time. We may think that we are being proactive. We resolve to take matters into our hands and set out on a course that is not intended for us. Impatience leads to hurtful results and we end up starting over in the waiting process.
• Rebellion/disobedience: we choose not to follow scripture and make compromises and rationalize our thoughts and behavior. This often reflects on how deeply we believe in our Savior Jesus Christ. We often follow what we believe and have faith in. If we choose disobedience then we no longer hold to our faith in Him. We make Him “less than.” Your behavior reflects your faith in Christ.
• Loneliness: our choices are often wrong because we don’t want to be alone. We are intimidated by isolation or seasonal, periodic aloneness and feel we have to have people in our lives to fill the void. We settle for those we might not otherwise give our attention to, or settle for behavior we might not otherwise accept. We lose our spiritual perspective.

In the end, Abraham and Sarah waited for their promised son Isaac. Through this they waited for God’s word to come to pass. However, in the course of God’s plan they waited wrongly because of Sarah’s self-made happenings in which she coerced the situation and brought Hagar into the equation. Sarah never took to Ishmael during the first thirteen years of his life.  So the good she had sought after wasn’t very good at all. We can wait for good things and in this case we can wait for bad things. When we have been bridled by waiting the rush to take matters into our hands is not so appealing. We consider the consequences in every step of our journey with God. The Lord is waiting for us to wait on Him and to do what only He does best to move in our lives.

 The Word in Motion: An Interactive

Is there such thing as “waiting wrongly?”

What does “waiting wrongly” mean to you?

Have you ever waited wrongly?

What are your personal risks in waiting wrongly?

Is redemption possible in a season of waiting wrongly?

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Photo credit by the author. Location: overlooking the bay from the Mondrian South Beach Hotel, Miami, FL

 Copyrght 2013 by The Word in Motion

 

Waiting. We wait for many things. We wait for things we want. The things we want come in time. On the other hand, we wait for things we do not want. The things that we do not want come in time too. So we wait for what we want and do not want, the good as well as the bad. So what does it mean to wait? How does it look in the life of a follower of Christ?

Waiting is counter to our human nature. Waiting takes patience as so few of us have it. For those who possess patience, waiting requires even more patience, most of the time. For the Christian, waiting can take on the extreme. I don’t mean the common cliché “I’m waiting for God.” I mean plain old waiting. We can wait for God to come through on a number of things such as, a re-location, acceptance into a college, university, or educational institution, a way-ward spouse to return, a spouse-to-be, healing, salvation of a loved one, a promotion, and the list goes on.  So, we wait for good things.    Waiting is a process measured by time. In God there is no time. He governs all things in their time and has created time itself. His time is not our time and cannot be compared nor contrasted in the time that humankind lives within. In waiting, there is a natural time, such as the birth of a child, healing of an illness or broken bones. It cannot be hurried as waiting is built into the process. In waiting, there is also a supernatural time, such as those things that cannot be reasonably explained because faith is involved. You cannot rush what is meant to be because all that is meant and purposed is bordered by time established by God. Therefore, time takes waiting, and waiting takes time.

The Word in Motion: An Interactive

What are you waiting for? 

How long have you been in a season of waiting?

What has the Holy Spirit taught you in the midst of waiting?

Why not wait?

What challenges have you faced during your season of waiting?   

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Photo credit by the author. Location: overlooking the bay from the Mondrian South Beach Hotel, Miami, FL

Copyright 2013 The Word in Motion

“Paul and Silas: The release” 

 Acts 16: 22 – 39

              Many years ago when I became a born-again Christian I began to pray for the salvation of my parents. It was an endless request to God as I looked for many ways to witness Christ as Son of God. Over time it occurred to me that the best way to evangelize was not so much by words, but by my actions. I made the choice to live out my salvation witness to my parents. However, during those ensuing years there were many times I did not think salvation was possible and I felt as though I had missed opportunities along the way to share Christ. It seemed that the next 26 years were more for me than for them. In this sense, I grew spiritually and began to understand what it meant to be a servant of God and to serve my parents out of Christ’s love rather than to be consumed with the where and the when of evangelistic success. I took the long-term view and discarded the short-term range. I chose to keep it high and focus on their hopeful salvation whether it came at the end of their lives or mine. Thus, I began to see God’s hand more powerfully than ever. I wasn’t responsible for my parent’s response to Christ. The moment I gave up the notion that their salvation rested on my shoulders I became a better servant of God to do His will and His work no matter what it required of me or the outcome. As such, I felt released. The iron bars fell. His strength in me was the transcendence of His Spirit at work in the midst of life’s circumstances.

The imprisonment of Paul and Silas was a backdrop, the scene, of the inspired Word of God. The iron bars and shackles were but merely accessories that adorned the men of God that graced the prison that night. “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you shall be saved, you and your household” (verse 31). From the scriptures it appeared that the jailer took Paul and Silas away from prison deep into the night and brought them to his household. Not only was the jailer and his household saved but they were also baptized. There was much celebration that night! It is amazing how God transforms people and situations where in this case there was a reconciliation between them. The gospel message not only transforms but reconciles and brings peace. It is a beautiful example of how God’s people extend care for one another.

When daylight came word was sent to the jailer that the chief magistrates wanted Paul and Silas to be released.  The jailer reported these words back to Paul. They were free to go. However, it was not going to be that easy for the chief magistrates. At this point Paul decided to inform them that he and Silas were Roman citizens. In verse 37 Paul says, “They have beaten us in public without trial, men who are Romans, and have thrown us into prison, and now are they sending us away secretly?” Though they were publicly beaten with rods they were not going to be released privately. Paul confronts their deeds and insists they follow though.  In the beginning, Paul made a very strategic decision. He had the gospel in mind. Knowing this, to have cried “I’m a Roman citizen” would have shown a lack of trust in God as well as divided loyalties. That is, does he trust in his citizenship or in God?  What impact would this have made to his Christ-witness?  More likely, confusion may have erupted and have done the gospel message a disservice. Paul assessed the situation from the beginning. He was a Jewish man with Roman citizenship. However, he was foremost a bond-servant of the Lord Jesus Christ.

It takes a tremendous amount of wisdom to have done what Paul did. The situation would present itself again and the chief magistrates would be confronted with their actions by the same measure it was brought about. It was important that Paul’s innocence be a matter of public record as he and Silas were never publicly charged. For Paul to have taken the release privately, after a public beating, would mean the situation would have been unresolved in the minds of the eye-witnesses. In a sense, Paul and Silas would have been dubbed “Christian fugitives” of sort. To Paul, everything hinged on the reputation of the gospel.  He kept the end in mind. He kept it high.

The chief magistrates were afraid when they heard that Paul and Silas were Romans and they kept begging them to leave the city. Alas, the release. Paul and Silas’s path to prison was not any less than out of it. Nothing can imprison the Spirit of the Lord.

To keep it high means to have God in view. Despite your circumstances and the situation you may be in, you must have the future in front of you all the time. Paul and Silas did. I am convinced that had Paul and Silas lost their view of Christ and chose the short-term range the outcome may have been very different and would have lost the purpose God had for them, and all New Testament believers since then and now.

I am filled with wonder the positive outcome I experience every time I make a decision by keeping it high. You will not go wrong when your current decisions are based on the future view of Christ. They will serve you well.

During the years I prayed for my parent’s salvation I chose to live out my witness instead. I kept it high and learned to be a servant of God. I realized that their decision to choose Christ ultimately had nothing to do with me. Twenty six years later I led my mother to Christ. It was during this time I learned to serve her and show God’s love for her. When she died it meant everything to know that she was in heaven. Shortly thereafter, I learned of my father’s commitment to God. They are both in the presence of our Lord and Savior.

To know that God not only had a plan for my parent’s salvation He had a plan during that time to mold me into His servant. Despite where we are in life’s journey God will use our situations and circumstances to bring about His purpose for us, and those around us as well.  The benefits of Christ have far reaching effects that extend beyond His chosen instruments.  No matter the time, the place, or the season you are in, have the gospel in mind, His reputation in sight, all so that you keep in Him. And when you do, you keep it high.

Copyright 2013 by The Word in Motion

 

“Paul and Silas: The imprisonment” 

Acts 16: 22 – 39

            Have you even been doing God’s work only to find yourself in a hard and difficult situation? In my eight year reign attending seminary I found myself in some of the most challenging of life’s experiences. I often asked myself, “Really?” Many times I questioned my purpose, my place, and my heart. I pondered “Am I really where you want me, God?” However, each time I witnessed an unmistakable trace of God which catapulted me deeper, further, higher. I grew relentless in my pursuit of Him and it drove me blazingly on my journey toward the glorious Son of God.

            In the Book of Acts chapter 16, verse 22 the scene opens where Paul and Silas had caused an uproar in the city and the chief magistrates ordered that they both be beaten with rods. After they had been beaten with many blows they were thrown into prison.

            Paul was in the thick of his purpose with God. He was on God’s missionary journey, persecution and all. The trials and tribulations were part of it. Not because it seemed to slip in but because it was written and ordained by the Father. It had to be. The Lord said “for I will show him how much he must suffer for My name’s sake” (Acts 9: 16). Sometimes reminders of our sinful past give us strength to endure the hardship that comes our way. We can never pay for our sins. How on earth can we determine such a price? Left up to us we would selfishly estimate far too low. Left up to others it would be far too high.  Only by grace can our sins be atoned for. They were paid for by the shed blood of Jesus Christ. Our payment remitted in full by His death and resurrection. Therefore, it is best that we be reminded of the crucifixion that Christ bore for the sins of all humanity, past, present, and future. As it puts all things in perspective.  

            The jailer received the charge to keep Paul and Silas securely so he threw them into an inner prison and fastened their feet with stock. “But about midnight…” Some time has passed since they were in prison. Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God while the other prisoners were listening.  This reminds me of a scene in the movie “The Shawshank Redemption” when a new inmate Andy Dufresne (played by actor Timothy Robbins) on assignment while serving time played over the prison intercom the song “Sull’aria” (from the opera “Le Nozze di Figaro”) sung by two sopranos. When the prisoners of Shawshank heard this beautiful aria they stopped what they were doing, stood still, looked high up toward the speakers and listened with awe and wonderment. It was audacious. Oh, how the prayers and hymns of Paul and Silas caught the attention of the prisoners that evening. It appears no one was sleeping that night. No doubt the other prisoners had heard of the apostle Paul. What company! A man of God among the vilest offenders that day. Singing praises to the Lord during difficult circumstances indicates the heart of His chosen ones. They were confident in their Lord without knowing the outcome. Their lives were not yet over. There was much work needed to be done and God’s journey continued.

            Verse 26 says, “…and suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken, and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s chains were unfastened.” The timing of this event was no coincidence. Though the praise itself did not cause the earthquake it is clear that it was a result of God’s hand.

            The jailer, having been asleep, arose and noticed that the prison doors opened and decided to draw his sword in an attempt to take his own life supposing that all the prisoners had escaped. However, Paul intervened. He chose not to escape but rather tried to bring calm to the situation and announced to the jailer “for we are all here” (verse 28). Can you imagine what the jailer was thinking? The prisoners were on his watch, especially the controversial apostle Paul. His whole life was riding on their imprisonment.  To find that the doors were wide open must have derailed him to such an extent he had no hope, and no good excuse to the magistrates.   He was in the grip of fear. However, God uses every moment, emotion, and situation to bring about His plan. In verse 30, the jailer trembling, fell down before Paul and Silas and said, “What must I do to be saved?”

            I’ve heard people talk how a life threatening circumstance, near death experience, and the hopelessness of fear brought them to their knees before the Almighty God. Our Father knows what it will take to gain our attention and will use circumstances and natural disasters to do it.

            When you are a true follower of Christ you will more likely stand out in the crowd. As such, you cannot follow the crowd. You know whom it is that you follow and it is not man. Followers of Christ will constantly go against the grain and cannot be controlled. It is a difficult path to follow the Lord.  You will constantly be tested of your allegiance. While those in the crowd may profess to be Christian the result of their outward actions will prove not to be any different from unbelievers. Few will choose to give up themselves and give of themselves to follow God.  The weakness to please man is much too great.

            To follow Christ means you may not attain reward, riches, or promotion. The apostle Paul was a true follower of Christ. His allegiance to God was known not only by his verbal proclamations, but by the actions he demonstrated in his life. Even more, the actions of God that led him.

 The Word in Motion: An Interactive

It’s one thing to surrender to man, but have you surrendered to God?

What does it mean to serve God?

Is your Christianity a long-term view or a short-term range?

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The Next Devotional

A Conclusion

“Keep it High”

“Paul and Silas: The release”

 Acts 16: 22 – 39

Copyright 2013 by The Word in Motion

Paul and Silas: Acts 16: 22 – 29      

              The best you can experience on earth cannot touch Heaven. When you do for God it never looks nor feels like you are doing anything for yourself. But you are. Rewards may not be realized on earth but they will come at the end of your journey when you are finally in the presence of our Savior.  It is incomprehensible.

            Many times when I engage my friends in conversations I say “I will keep it high.” At first, I got confused looks and questions such as, “What do you mean by that?” However, after several years of my saying this my friends know what I mean.

            When you are a servant of Christ you do not live unto yourself. You learn to live taking the back seat, back row, and back burner in most aspects of your life. It is a mark of being a distant second to the one who takes first place, God. The closer you are to the Father the further away you will be, that is, to your very self. In so doing, the higher things become to you.

            So as a servant of God I do not live for myself. I live lesser to me.  Each time I try to extend my hand something in my mind tells me “you better pull it back.” Then I let it go. I have learned to let a lot go. In this sense, I am letting go of myself, my plans, my thoughts, and my hand. As such, I can never go before myself. Mostly I cannot even stand up for myself. Life’s spiritual lessons run deep that I recognize apart from the Father I can do nothing. It has become easier to take it on the chin, turn the other cheek, give up my seat, wait a little longer, relinquish my turn, and to step down. All at the cost to remain blameless, but not for myself, but for God so that He can do what He does without my getting in the way. The lesser I am the greater He becomes. Simply, smoothly, purely.

            I have learned to hold the end in mind, His reputation in sight, all so that I can keep in Him, and when I do, I keep it high.

 The Word in Motion: An Interactive

What does it mean to you to “keep it high?”

Have you ever taken a step down so that someone else can take a step up?

Do you live for yourself instead of for God?

What things are first place in your life?

How will you relinquish yourself this week?

_____________________________________________

The next devotional:

“Keep it High”

“Paul and Silas: The imprisonment”

 Acts 16: 22 – 39

Copyright 2016 by The Word in Motion

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In His Service,

Apollolina