Friday, March 4, 2011

WAITING ON THE LORD

Lam 3:25 The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, To the soul who seeks Him.


I know I say this alot, but I honestly can't believe how fast these weeks whip by. It is Friday again already! I have had a good week, but nothing really out of the ordinary in many ways that I can post about. There is A LOT going on, but they are stories without endings yet, so guess I should wait for the outcome before I post about it. I never have been a very patient person, and easily get excited and swooped along on a new possibility of some sort, so this "waiting" is not something I do very well. And yet in scripture we are taught the importance of "waiting" on the Lord.

Isa 30:18 Therefore the LORD will wait, that He may be gracious to you; And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the LORD is a God of justice; Blessed are all those who wait for Him.

Therefore the LORD will wait, that He may be gracious to you: We often wonder why the LORD waits to do things in our lives. I know I do anyway. Isaiah tells us plainly here that it is so He may be gracious to you. How wonderful is that?? Whenever the LORD waits or seems to delay, it always has a loving purpose behind it. We can trust that even when we don’t understand it. And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on us: When God has mercy on us, it exalts Him. Mercy does nothing to exalt the person who receives it; mercy recognizes the guilt of the one who deserves the punishment. But mercy exalts the goodness of the person who gives it. It shows them to be loving, generous, and full of mercy. For the Lord is a God of justice: On the surface, mercy and justice seem to oppose each other. If a guilty criminal stands before a judge, he has the choice to show either mercy or justice. But God is so great, He can show both at the same time. Because on the cross, Jesus took the punishment we deserve, God’s justice is satisfied. And yet at the same time, He shows mercy by extending the work of Jesus to us as payment for our sins. Only God can reconcile mercy and justice, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Blessed are all those who wait for Him: Because God is so great, there is a built-in blessing for those who wait for Him. Isaiah doesn’t mean wait just in the sense of passing time, but in the sense of patiently waiting for and trusting God’s promise, KNOWING He will fulfill it in His perfect timing and way.

We are still waiting on God's decision on James becoming the senior pastor of the church down in San Diego. As much as we would all like an answer for this as soon as possible (like yesterday Lord!) we do wait on the Lord to work out all the details in ways we never could. This has been a LONG story, full of many twists and turns and unexpected happenings, but one that I have personally enjoyed watching the Lord work... up close and personal. Irregardless of what ends up happening, and who serves as the senior pastor for this church, I am confident that the Lord is protecting HIS church and these people, and look forward to seeing just what the Lord has in mind. And in the meantime, I am pleased that James seems to be so open to the leading of the Lord, and willing to serve Him wherever he is placed. He will do the Sunday morning service there this week, so I am also happy to be able to travel down there again this week and be blessed!

We are also waiting on a job possibility that has come up recently from my husband as well. It was not one that he went seeking for, but rather one that came looking for him. It seems to be a wonderful opportunity, and it is hard for me not to push and shove and MAKE it happen, haha. I feel soo strongly that my hubby has worked HARD through his career and soo deserves this possibility. How I admire his work ethics and abilities, and respect soo much the job he has done to provide for his family the way he has over the years. I wish I had told him this more often.

We wait as the Lord forms this new grandbaby deep within my daughter's womb, and pray and trust Him to keep it all in His very capable hands. The pregnancy continues to go well, but she continues to be sick. She is learning to listen to her mama (I have had 4 pregnancy's afterall Mel, lol) and is keeping something in her tummy no matter what, and keeping up and busy. The tendency with first pregnancies is to "nurse" the morning sickness by staying in bed I think, if that is possible. And since Mel doesn't have to work outside of the home (she is still substitute teaching ~ another long story) and has no other little ones to care for yet, this seemed like a good idea at first. But she quickly learned it doesn't work well anyway, and she is way to active to keep down for very long as well. So she moves along really well I think, in spite of the fact she has little energy and a VERY queasy tummy...WAIT Mel, for this too shall pass, haha....

There are other things we wait on as well, but this is getting long so I will end it with one of my all time favorite verses. How it blesses me and brings joy and hope to my heart.

Isa 40: 31 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.

Notice the order, because it does seem strange... First we mount up with wings like eagles. Then we run. Finally we walk. Does it seem out of order? Not at all. First, we recognize that we soar up into heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:6). Then we set ourselves on the course to run the race (Hebrews 12:1). Then we are in the good place to walk the walk (Colossians 2:6). How wonderful is this?

Hope you all have a GREAT week-end.

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19 comments:

  1. Happy Friday, friend. Sounds like another great week in California - any week that we learn more about the heart of our Lord is a great week, right? You certainly have been learning much...and, I agree, that whole waiting thing is one we are continually trying to understand and appreciate. Surely, God does know best.

    Certainly hoping that the morning sickness passes soon - I never really had that with my babies but I know so many who really suffer. Of course, every time she is ill...is a very real reminder of God's answered prayer - and a baby!!:)

    I hope you have a great weekend!! Do something special:) and hope you have your card time with your mom - and the girls win!!:)

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  2. Hi dear Debbie, I love this post and your heart for tying in spiritual lessons to everyday life-that is what life is about, after all.
    Firstly, for your girl, if you have Mommy & Me stores in your area(I'm sure you do)they carry a lollipop called Prego pops-and believe me they sure worked for my daughters 4 pregnancies(don't tell Mel that she might always get sick)but my girl has four girls so there you go.
    So exciting to hear about your hubby and sons opportunities-I'll definitely remember them in prayer.
    Hugs to you today Debbie, wish you were close so we could play.
    Noreen

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  3. Great words to enter the weekend with...I have had those scriptures in my head all day, so you just added to what God was showing me...oh, waiting...seems like I have been doing that for the last decade!
    Blessings on all your waitings...each one just a joy and true timely blessing.
    Have a great weekend...you always do

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  4. As always great post, Debbie, We too have been waiting about some things, as well as one of our children, and was telling her today that the hardest thing is to wait on God's timing as it is perfect.
    I will be praying about your dh's job opportunity, and James as well. And will continue prayers for Mel.
    I can imagine the anticipation you as a wife, and mother are feeling right now. So many wonderful gifts from God coming. I am always amazed at the faithfulness of God in our lives!
    Enjoy your weekend visiting your son as he brings the sweet manna!
    Hugs,
    Sue

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  5. Glad that things are going well with Mel!!!!
    : )

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  6. great post Debbie...I'm not such a great waiter and there's so much in life that you just got to wait for. thanks for this.....hope your weekend is great.

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  7. The scriptures you share here with your waiting needs are so comforting...as we wait to for a couple of different answers from God. Blessings!

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  8. Waiting is so darn hard! Thanks for the reminders to trust Him and rest in His Word.

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  9. Thank you! Loved the pictures. God is good, He always pulls through in time.

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  10. Debbie, I pray that your husband will indeed get this job, and I will pray for a healthy grandbaby also. Your post today reminds me of one of my favorite songs~~We Will Wait Upon the Lord.
    God Bless,
    Ginger

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  11. It's true we always want our answers yesterday. Waiting isn't easy, but when we wait for God's direction and His will, it is worth the wait.

    Blessings,
    Joan

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  12. You've shown a lot of insight in this post. Waiting is probably one of the hardest things we have to do in this life. I know how you feel about wanting the answers now especially when going to work with a church is concerned. There were churches my husband and I wanted to work with when he was preaching that we just knew would be the right thing, but God knew so much more about it than we did. When we did make a move it was always so clear to us that this was God's leading. And it was best that we did not go to some of the places we thought we wanted to go.
    Have a wonderful week.
    Blessings,
    Charlotte

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  13. This "wait" thing has been everywhere I turn. I've posted about it, too!

    Have a great week.

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  14. My Melanie just gave birth a month ago. She was still throwing up the day she delivered. But in the end it was all worth it. Ha!

    Waiting is not something that comes easily for me. But life brings those times and some things can not be rushed. Great post.

    Blessings,
    Pamela

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  15. Waiting is always hard.
    Blessings,
    Annette

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  16. Waiting is so hard! I know that things will all fall into place for you, and for your son. Is he still doing the Sunday morning service? If he is, I'd love to try and come this coming Sunday!

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  17. Waiting is one of my most challenging things to do. But I guess it's all about trust. Do I believe that God's promises are 'yes' and 'amen' ?

    YES I DO!

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  18. That Lamentations 3 passage (specifically vs. 19-26) is one of my favorites -- and I keep working on waiting on the Lord. Difficult command to obey...but it IS commanded!

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I am so glad that you would take the time to comment on my thoughts and feelings, it is such a blessing to me!