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I Waited Patiently

I waited patiently  By Mike Miller

Psalm 40:1

“I waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry.”

Waiting is hard to do in a world were two day delivery and smart phones dominate the mind and tell us we can have it all now, and the way we want. The thought of waiting can just make a person irritated. Waiting with out grumbling of complaining; but patiently seems an especially  imposable task. Patients is often an area in which every human has struggled with. I’ve at lease never met a person who hasn’t. Nor have I met a Christian who’s not prayed to the Lord in there life time to help them to be more patient. Here in Psalm 40:1 we see David’s proclamation of what happens to the believer when he or she waits on the Lord with patience; He hears our cry. He inclines his ear to us and answers. One of the hardest things for us to do yields great fruit.  Whatever the reason the Lord is waiting to answer one thing is for sure at the end of it all he works all things out for our good. (Romans 8:28) In times of waiting remember God is working the very best out for you. You need only to simply wait. At the end of waiting you will find winning. And at the end of patience you will find peace wether or not The Lord answers the way you’d hoped. He will always answer with Grace upon Grace. If it’s a crying baby in the middle of the night, a loved one that you cant seem to see eye to eye with, or an answer on a Job application. The Word of God implores us in  (James 1:4-8 NKJV) “But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” Patience is working inside us to perfect us and ultimately make us more like Christ. Any outburst, or bitterness will hinder this working. The Lord will never disappoint those who wait on him with and patiently anticipate his answer.

“but they who wait for 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)

Other May, I Cannot

Daniel 1:8 Life is a series of choices. We make our decisions and our decisions turn around and make us. Many of us are who we are today because of decisions and choices we made years ago. Choices! Decisions! Which way to go? And so the the road of life comes to a fork. Which one will I follow? Daniel a young teenager has been torn away from his family in Jerusalem and is now faced with a decision whether to obey God or king Nebuchadnezzar. Daniel could have just gone along, after all they were a long way from home, who was going to know the difference. And besides “God understands it’s only food. ”But Daniel” “purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank therefore he requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. Verse 8 says that he “purposed in his heart”. The NIV version says “But Daniel resolved ...” And yet Another translation says he “made up his mind.” Everything else flows from this. That is, he made up his own mind. Daniel already decided in his heart that he is not going to do things the worldly way. He already decided in his heart he is going to walk by faith and rely on God. The Babylonians could change everything his diet, his location, his education, his language, even his name but they couldn’t change his heart. Why? If I may suggest to you, His heart belonged to God. See When your heart truly belongs to God, you can go anywhere and face any situation and you’ll be okay. You can even live in Babylon and do just fine because your body is in Babylon but your heart is in heaven. Daniel drew a line in the sand and said “This Far and No Farther”

The world has changed since Daniel’s day, but God has not changed. God’s Word has not changed. The world still tries to seduce us. So make up your mind right now that by God’s grace, when those moments come, you will purpose in your heart not to defile yourself. Years ago, I heard a little phrase that has helped me more than once. When faced with a hard moral choice: “Others may, I cannot.” You don’t have to decide for anyone else, but you do have to decide for you. So the question for all of us is, Where is your heart? Does it truly belong to God? Or is your heart fixed on the things of this earth?

Donald Garcia, Assistant Pastor, CCNH