I've spent some time lately in waiting rooms (dentist, doctor, optometrist) and this led me to thinking about "God's waiting room". I am an impatient person and I hate to wait! It is bad enough to have to wait in a natural sense; it's even worse spiritually! But God doesn't make us wait just to see us languish in frustration. What are the lessons of God's waiting room?
David had to wait a long time after he was anointed before he finally became king. Joseph had to wait in prison several years before God exalted him before Pharaoh. Moses was in Midian for 40 years before God called him--out of the burning bush--to deliver the children of Israel. You can probably think of others. What did they learn during those "waiting" times? One thing that comes to mind is that they learned how to rely totally on God--how to really lean on Him.
I've found several Bible verses that talk about waiting--we all know the verse from Isaiah 40:31 ..they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength...
How about this from Is. 30:7 "Their strength is to sit still". Hmmm....
or this from Psalm 27:14 "Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD."
Do we have to wait longer (and more often) if we don't learn God's lessons the first time?
Maybe the next time when I'm tired of waiting on the Lord (I just want to DO something!), I'll remember that: "Waiting is to be our earthly schooling..." ( I hope there won't be a "next time" but it seems there always is!)
We Americans pride ourselves on being independent and self-sufficient (well, at least we used to!). That is a good thing for the most part but it can be taken too far. That is especially true in a spiritual sense.
Do we try to "pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps" instead of relying on God--or allowing others to help us? Do we try to handle everything our own way and use prayer only as a "last resort"?
Sometimes, I think we're like the would-be handy man who makes such a mess of things that by the time the repairman is called, it is a major disaster--costing a lot more in terms of time and money.
One of our ministers asked the question last week, "Did you run it by God?". Do we really "take it to the Lord in prayer" or do we rely on our own "self-sufficiency"?
(unless things get really bad..we all seem to remember to pray then!)
 | Remember II Corinthians 3:5-- Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God. |
One of the things which makes the Bible unique as a historical record is that its heroes and leaders are presented "warts and all". Nothing is glossed over; failures and foibles (both personal and military) are presented as well as victories and triumphs.
I wonder if we as Christian brethren are afraid to be seen in the same way. Do we struggle so hard to "keep up appearances" that we are not being genuine? People can tell if that smile on your face is one of real joy or is merely "pasted on". I know that it is uncomfortable to make ourselves vulnerable in front of others. (And we do need to be circumspect about who we open ourselves up to; as well as keeping the things people relate to us in strictest confidence.) But how can we help others in the Body of Christ if we all pretend that "everything is fine"?
Some of us possess a strong sense of self-preservation; we'd rather die than let others know that we have struggles and weaknesses. But what does the Word say:"Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another that ye may be healed..." (James 5:16)
Are we secretly afraid that others will think less of us if they knew what we were really like? One of our ministers remarked to this effect: "in the best of us, there is some bad (some vestige of pride or self-righteousness?); in the worst of us, there is still much good".
Underneath it all, you might be surprised--we are more alike than you might imagine. Be genuine. Be authentic. We need each other!
Many animals have shells to protect them from danger--but God did not create people that way! Nevertheless, some of us make our own flimsy shells and crawl inside, away from everyone else, so that we can feel safer (our "comfort zone").
I am not talking about solitude (which is good) but about isolation. We don't need our own shells; what we need is the "armor of God"! We need to be protecting ourselves against the wiles of the devil; not against each other. Do we allow our feelings to be hurt easily? We need thick skins, but not thick shells.
Some of us have very cozy shells from which we are just escaping--ask God to block the door so that you can't crawl back in. We need each other! Sometimes, those brothers or sisters who have spent years hiding in their shells can have the most to offer, once they emerge. If nothing else, they have a sensitivity to others who feel cut-off and lonely.
| I Corinthians 12:22 "Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary:" |
| Psalms 90:12 So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom. |
Poor listening skills lead to poor communication. But does this also apply in a spiritual sense?
Do you put on your "spiritual ears" when you pray or read/hear the Word--Or are you "dull of hearing"? Maybe you are not giving God your full attention...maybe you pay lip-service to what He is telling you without having any intention of actually doing anything about it. Or perhaps you interrupt--thinking that you know better than God himself!
It is rude to be a poor listener. It is especially foolish to not listen carefully and closely to God.
"He who hath ears to hear, let him hear"! What is God trying to tell you today?
| James 1:19 "Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath" |
I think that, in a way, what we Christians are called to do is even a bit harder. We, too, were called out of the "ocean of sin", we too have to battle against the world's currents. And the more the world deviates from the Bible's teachings, the stronger the currents are. But, unlike the salmon, we have free will. At any point in our journey, we can simply decided to quit. "I didn't expect the way to be this narrow, this hard." How much easier it would be to just "go with the flow" and drift back into that worldly ocean!
We need to be focused on "Home" just as the salmon is, letting nothing stand in our way! We do not have the salmon's instincts, but we do have our own personal "Guide". He knows the way; He will lead us safely Home.
Looking for that City,
Have you looked in the mirror lately? Did you like what you saw? Maybe you just took a quick glimpse before going out. Maybe you are getting older and prefer to avoid mirrors altogether! Maybe you took a honest appraisal and decided there was room for improvement. What am I talking about? Mirrors? No, not really....
God's Word is often described as a mirror; where (if we take a long, honest look and not just a quick glance) we can see ourselves as we truly are. If we don't want to see ourselves quite that clearly, we may avoid the Word. Or, when we hear it preached, we don't apply it to ourselves. "My, that was a good sermon for so-and-so" we think. "I sure hope he was listening!"
Do we reflect Christ in our lives? (II Cor. 3:18) Do we allow the Word to really soak in and change us or are we like the man in
| James 1:23,24-- For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was." |
Have you looked in the mirror lately? Take a good, hard look this time!
Can we be overconfident in God? Can we trust Him too much? I don't think so; God keeps all His promises. We are supposed to place our total confidence in Him. Our tendency, however, is to be "under-confident" in God and overconfident in self. Overconfidence is really false confidence in our own abilities. Is it any surprise that such overconfidence ultimately leads to failure and disappointment? Remember Peter's overconfident boast: "Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison and to death." How did that turn out?
We are to trust in God, not to put our confidence in men( Ps. 118:8), or in ourselves, for that matter. We are to have "no confidence in the flesh" (Philip. 3:3). We are not to glory in our own wisdom or might or riches, but in the fact that we know God. (Jer.9:23,24). Confidence is good, but we need to have the right kind: the quiet assurance that comes from trusting God completely.
So--where is your confidence? Is it in politics, money, or the stock market? Is it in your own intelligence, talents, or abilities? If your confidence is rooted in anything other than God, it is time to step back and re-evaluate. Let's not be confident in who we are (Rom 2:19-23), but in who God is! Place your confidence in the Potter, not in the lump of clay!
| 1 Corinthians 4:7 For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it? |
| Jeremiah 9:23,24 23Thus saith the LORD, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: 24But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the LORD. |
There are two main types of animal mimicry. The first is when a harmless species resembles a poisonous or dangerous kind and so is left alone by would-be predators. There are several butterfly and moth species that are examples of this.
The other kind of mimicry is more sinister; it occurs when a predator mimics a plant or a "friendly" species and thus surprises its unsuspecting prey. For example, the flower mantid or the crab spider, each of which will hide, perfectly camouflaged, in a flower. When an insect visits the flower, attracted by the scent or color, it is snatched up and devoured by the unseen predator.
An even better example, for our purposes, is the sabre toothed blenny. A blenny is a small fish which looks just like the cleaner fish. It has similar color and even swims the same way. Larger fish are used to the helpful little cleaner fish(these cleaners eat the harmful parasites that live on the larger fish's body). The larger fish are fooled by the blenny and allow it to come closer, whereby the blenny snatches a small bite out of the unsuspecting victim's side.
Do you see the spiritual parallels? It is the old ravening "wolf in sheep's clothing" trick(Matt. 7:15). Why doesn't Satan show his true colors? Because then we would be warned and flee immediately! No, he is sly and subtle (he hasn't changed his "modus operandi" since Eden). He appears as an "angel of light". His doctrines, at first glance, seem innocent. So how can we tell the counterfeit from the real?--By becoming experts on the genuine! "Try the spirits whether they are of God"(I John 4:1). Be on your guard. (Notice how often Jesus said in His Olivet discourse, "Take heed that no man deceive you"). Check out everything by comparing it with Scripture (be a good "Berean"--Acts 17:11).
Be alert and observant; don't let Satan take a "bite" out of you!
"All comparisons are odious".( that is from "Don Quixote"). Odious or not, we tend to make comparisons everyday. The question is not "is it good", but: "is it better than the other". But I'm not talking about comparison shopping; rather, I'm concerned about how we use "yardsticks" to "rank" each other.
Comparisons can lead to some ugly results:
| an unbeliever may reject salvation on this basis. i.e.: "I'm just as good as he is and he calls himself a Christian" |
| pride/self-righteousness--as in the Pharisee comparing himself with the publican: "I thank thee that I am not like other men" |
| . feelings of envy or worthlessness: "Everything comes easy for him, it's not fair!" or,"I'll never be as good as her, no matter how hard I try." |
| . it can lead to division in the church--as in Corinth: "I am of Paul; and I of Apollos...." |
Remember Paul's words in II Cor. 10:12--
"For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise."
So--whose yardstick are we to use? Against what should we compare ourselves? Consider--how do you "stack up" against God's word (or against the Living Word Himself)? God isn't interested in how well we are doing in comparison with some other brother or sister. He knows we are all different, for He made us that way! He is going to expect more of some of us than of others. As in the parable of the talents, He is looking to see how well we use what he has given us. Only God knows our motives, for He alone searches our hearts. He will judge each brother or sister fairly. Don't say "But, Lord, what about him?" Remember Jesus's words : "What is that to thee? Follow thou me". We would do well to have less comparison in the Body and more unity. Let's not forget--we are all on the same team!
