Re: In the Waiting
My other blogging site is facebook, much of my communications with my friends from school takes place there. After posting my latest post "In the Waiting" my friend Mike wrote this response on his blog. I was inspired and encouraged by it and thought I would share it with you here.
Lindsay,
I found your note to be sobering and a fresh thought on the work of God as He continually reveals Himself to mankind. Chris Tomlin's song "Everlasting God" was inspired by a passage from Isaiah 40, which reads:
Why do you say, O Jacob, and assert, O Israel,
"My way is hidden from the LORD,
And the justice due me escapes the notice of my God"?
Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth
Does not become weary or tired
His understanding is inscrutable.
He gives strength to the weary,
And to him who lacks might He increases power.
Though youths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous young men stumble badly,
Yet those who wait for the LORD
Will gain new strength;
They will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary.
The basic message of the passage is: although Israel might be running from God and unrepentant at heart, God does not grow weary nor give up on her in searching her out and waiting to judge her. Instead, those who seek out the Lord and await the rescuing act of His people will indeed be gifted strength and victory in the end. "God is already here" has always been true, but that does not change the fact that He has taken time to reveal Himself. We await that, especially on that day when all things will end and He will be fully seen and fully understood. At that time, those who have reserved their own wills and their own hands against those who defile what is good and trample on the will of our Father will be given strength and we will be victorious.
I believe there is a strength in abstaining from what we would naturally strive to do. This includes not only retaliating against those who hate but also thinking selfishly in times of need or hurt, wanting more in times of jealousy and the prosperousness of our friends and neighbors, seeking to attain what isn't ours in times of lust, worrying about what tomorrow might bring in times of insecurity and uncertainty, eating fruit that shouldn't be eaten, taking our ill emotions out on others in times of outrage and frustration, keeping for ourselves instead of giving away to those who need it so much more, publically displaying our acts of spirituality towards God in times of obedience, judging others in times of their wrong doings, and hearing the words of our Lord and disregarding them when we ought to follow. It takes a waiting spirit to faithfully stand by amidst the fear of death and allow such things to take place without creating some reaction from deep inside us. It takes a willingness to believe. It takes faith to be thankful; thankful enough for that which we have to keep us from striving on our own to secure the future.
Paul was told to wait when he cried out about his fleshy thorn. Jesus was told to wait when he cried out about the cross he was about to endure. David was told to wait when he cried out about his lost son. Gideon was told to wait when he cried out about the near impossible feat he was about to undergo. The church is told to wait when we constantly cry out maranatha. All throughout the Scriptures we see person after person being told to wait for God. The over all message that comes ringing through is that He knows what time is best to bring about His glory. We must wait on Him because this produces in us the ultimate test. Those who truly wait are faithful to the end. When even in the midst of such suffering and weakness that we see from day to day and calling out to God asking, "How much more, Father, will your heart endure?" we stand still awaiting His redeeming act and resurrection to bring new life.
Isn't that the true test then? Are you faithful enough to wait on God? After all, He was the one who said it is His to avenge, and no one else's. He alone will one day judge. Already yet not fully. Thank you for your refreshing note and great reminder that it takes patience to be faithful, not any words that come cheap from the lips that praise one minute and curse the next. May we not grow to see our faith as some self-serving religion bent only towards our own needs while calling it God's love, but instead may we truly learn what it means to become like Him, seeking God's hand as we await His glory.
michael
cf. "In the waiting" by Lindsay Neumann.
Lindsay,
I found your note to be sobering and a fresh thought on the work of God as He continually reveals Himself to mankind. Chris Tomlin's song "Everlasting God" was inspired by a passage from Isaiah 40, which reads:
Why do you say, O Jacob, and assert, O Israel,
"My way is hidden from the LORD,
And the justice due me escapes the notice of my God"?
Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth
Does not become weary or tired
His understanding is inscrutable.
He gives strength to the weary,
And to him who lacks might He increases power.
Though youths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous young men stumble badly,
Yet those who wait for the LORD
Will gain new strength;
They will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary.
The basic message of the passage is: although Israel might be running from God and unrepentant at heart, God does not grow weary nor give up on her in searching her out and waiting to judge her. Instead, those who seek out the Lord and await the rescuing act of His people will indeed be gifted strength and victory in the end. "God is already here" has always been true, but that does not change the fact that He has taken time to reveal Himself. We await that, especially on that day when all things will end and He will be fully seen and fully understood. At that time, those who have reserved their own wills and their own hands against those who defile what is good and trample on the will of our Father will be given strength and we will be victorious.
I believe there is a strength in abstaining from what we would naturally strive to do. This includes not only retaliating against those who hate but also thinking selfishly in times of need or hurt, wanting more in times of jealousy and the prosperousness of our friends and neighbors, seeking to attain what isn't ours in times of lust, worrying about what tomorrow might bring in times of insecurity and uncertainty, eating fruit that shouldn't be eaten, taking our ill emotions out on others in times of outrage and frustration, keeping for ourselves instead of giving away to those who need it so much more, publically displaying our acts of spirituality towards God in times of obedience, judging others in times of their wrong doings, and hearing the words of our Lord and disregarding them when we ought to follow. It takes a waiting spirit to faithfully stand by amidst the fear of death and allow such things to take place without creating some reaction from deep inside us. It takes a willingness to believe. It takes faith to be thankful; thankful enough for that which we have to keep us from striving on our own to secure the future.
Paul was told to wait when he cried out about his fleshy thorn. Jesus was told to wait when he cried out about the cross he was about to endure. David was told to wait when he cried out about his lost son. Gideon was told to wait when he cried out about the near impossible feat he was about to undergo. The church is told to wait when we constantly cry out maranatha. All throughout the Scriptures we see person after person being told to wait for God. The over all message that comes ringing through is that He knows what time is best to bring about His glory. We must wait on Him because this produces in us the ultimate test. Those who truly wait are faithful to the end. When even in the midst of such suffering and weakness that we see from day to day and calling out to God asking, "How much more, Father, will your heart endure?" we stand still awaiting His redeeming act and resurrection to bring new life.
Isn't that the true test then? Are you faithful enough to wait on God? After all, He was the one who said it is His to avenge, and no one else's. He alone will one day judge. Already yet not fully. Thank you for your refreshing note and great reminder that it takes patience to be faithful, not any words that come cheap from the lips that praise one minute and curse the next. May we not grow to see our faith as some self-serving religion bent only towards our own needs while calling it God's love, but instead may we truly learn what it means to become like Him, seeking God's hand as we await His glory.
michael
cf. "In the waiting" by Lindsay Neumann.