Ready, Set—Wait

In Lamentations 3:25-26 it says, “The LORD is good to everyone who trusts in him, so it is best for us to wait in patience—to wait for him to save us.” (GNT)

When life seems to be falling apart, the best and most “spiritual” response will surprise us: Get alone with God, and wait.

The Bible tells us in Lamentations 3:28, “When life is heavy and hard to take, go off by yourself. Enter the silence. Bow in prayer. Don’t ask questions: Wait for hope to appear. Don’t run from trouble. Take it full-face. The ‘worst’ is never the worst” (MSG).

We don’t know how to “enter the silence.” We’re always anxious. We don’t like to wait on God because it stresses us out. We like to be in control.

What does it mean to wait on God? I sit down, close my mouth, and just listen. I may read my Bible. I may pray. But most of all, I’m quiet in front of God.

Anxiety comes when I’m not “waiting for hope to appear,” as Jeremiah tells us. God wants to talk to me. He wants to give me the hope I crave. But I’m way too busy to hear him.

If we want to listen to God and experience the hope he has for me, then I have to get alone with him. We must “enter the silence” and be ready to hear him.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:6, “Find a quiet, secluded place so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace” (MSG).

Get honest with God, and my focus will shift from just seeing my problems—no matter how overwhelming they seem—to God’s grace.

Lamentations 3:25-26 says, “The LORD is good to everyone who trusts in him, so it is best for us to wait in patience—to wait for him to save us” (GNT). 

Before I go out and try to solve my problem on my own, let God save me. No matter what obstacle I’m facing, I’ve got to wait for his timing. He’ll time my next move perfectly.

Get still, and listen. Then, wait for hope to appear. 

Using My Words to Build Others Up

In Ephesians 4:29 it says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” (NIV)

Sometimes my words are like a sledgehammer. I swing away without thinking, and suddenly I look around and realize a pile of relational rubble surrounds me. When I thoughtlessly sling my words around and tear people down, my relationships are going to suffer.

But God wants me to use my words to build others up. Ephesians 4:29 says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” (NIV).

One reason I’m not effective with my words is that I don’t realize how my mouth and words are powerful, God-given tools. I say things without thinking. And people remember them.

I can still remember certain things people said to me in a careless way—even as far back as grade school. That’s how powerful words are. So when it comes to the words I say, think of them as a power tool and be extremely careful.

How can I use my mouth more carefully, so I am using it to build relationships and not to tear people down?

1. Stop making excuses. Stop saying, “I didn’t really mean to say that” or “That’s just how I am before my first cup of coffee.” Realize that what I say impacts everybody around me. 

2. Talk less. We often get in trouble because we just don’t know when to stop talking. If it’s a power tool, I shouldn’t have to use it as much, right?

3. Listen more. If I listen more, I can better understand people’s needs.

4. Start building. Let my first thoughts be, “What does this person need?” “How can I use a word of encouragement to build them up?” “What can I say to make a difference in their life?”

Consider making this part of my morning prayers: “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer” (Psalm 19:14 NIV). 

In Order to Hear God, I Need to Learn to Be Still and Listen

Job 37:14 

“Pause a moment, Job, and listen; consider the wonderful things God does.”(GNT)

The first phase God uses to grow my faith is when he gives me a dream. But to hear this dream, I have to listen for God’s voice—and that means I have to silence the noise around me.

The Bible says God speaks in a still, small voice, so I can’t hear him in the whirlwind of a chaotic life. I can’t hear God with the TV on or when I’m distracted by all the things I need to do today.

I may think God never speaks to me. But perhaps it only seems that God never speaks, because I’m never quiet enough to listen to him!

Something is always going on in my mind—I’m thinking through the week’s schedule, scrolling through social media, or replaying a difficult conversation I had. So while God is trying to get through to me on the telephone of life, he’s getting a busy signal. 

To hear from God, I’ve got to get quiet and reserve time alone with him.

The Bible says in Job 37:14, “Pause a moment, Job, and listen; consider the wonderful things God does” (GNT).

God wants to spend time with me. It’s like he’s saying, “Pause, be quiet, get alone, and learn solitude so I can talk with you.” 

Is knowing God’s dream for my life worth giving him a day? I’ve never taken an entire day to do nothing but be alone with God? 

Here’s what I can do on a day like that: Talk to God in prayer. Let God talk to me through the Bible. Relax. Think. Write down the thoughts he puts in my mind. Set some goals. Look through my schedule. Set my priorities. Spend the day asking, “God, where do you want me to go? What direction do you want me heading?”

Then make a habit of having a quiet time with God each day. It’s tough to spend all day every day in quiet and stillness with God, but I can set aside a short time each day. A daily quiet time looks a lot like what that entire day with God might look like, just shorter.

Remember: God speaks to people who take the time to listen—not just for a day but also on a regular basis. 

I need to set aside some time to be still and quiet with God. It may be surprising how much he wants to say!

Typically my quiet times are short bursts of devotional reading and taking highlight notes. I’m not usually quiet.  I have been waking up at night to use the restroom and not being able to get back to sleep.  I usually spend this time praying and reciting scripture memory or thinking through the training I’m taking. 

In the past I have set aside time to go to a coffee shop or library and review a devotional and think / plan.  In those times I usually get some energy and renewed focus. I need to get back to doing a quiet time before I start work.  This means I’ll have to get up earlier, but I do remember the value I received from those times. 

I Grow as I Help Others Mature

In 2 Timothy 2:2 I read, “The things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others” (NIV).

If I want the special blessing of God in and on my life, I need to learn from other believers who are more mature than me, and I need to mentor believers who are younger than me.

Every Christian needs both a Paul and a Timothy. A “Paul” is somebody who’s been a Christian longer than me and is helping to train and encourage me. That person may only be a month older than me, but he or she knows a little bit more and can mentor me.

To have a “Timothy” means there is somebody in my life who hasn’t been a Christian as long as me, and I am helping build that person's faith. I am offering my Timothy encouragement and discipleship as he or she grows in the Lord.

So as I have a Paul and a Timothy in my life, I am also a Paul and a Timothy to someone else.

“The things you have heard me say in the presence of many entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others” (2 Timothy 2:2 NIV).

There are four generations in that verse. Paul says to Timothy that he helped mentor him, Timothy must find somebody to mentor, and then that person can find somebody else to mentor.

Mentoring is as easy as taking someone to breakfast once a month and asking, “How’s it going?” I just need to be a friend. Listen to, encourage, and pray for that person. I don’t have to be the perfect Christian to do this. I just have to be willing.

When I do, I will receive a blessing from God in my life that I cannot imagine. 

Mercy Could Be My Greatest Witness

In Luke 6:36 I read, “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” (NIV)

In an increasingly unkind world, my greatest Christian witness is to show people mercy.

Our world is unmerciful and unforgiving. It seems the highest form of humor is the put-down. Even comedians get paid for their sarcastic and cynical jabs at others.

When others see me showing mercy, especially considering how rude and mean society has become, they will see an example of, “what a Christian is like, one who is like Jesus.”

Jesus says in Luke 6:36, “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful” (NIV).  

There are four things I can do to build a lifestyle of mercy. The first two are:

First, start looking and listening for people’s needs. Whose needs? The needs of people in my neighborhood, at my work, and in my family. Mercy always begins with awareness. If I’m not aware, then I don’t care.

The Bible says, “Look out for one another’s interests, not just for your own” (Philippians 2:4 GNT).

I don’t struggle to be merciful because I’m a bad person. It’s because I’m too busy. Busyness is the number one destroyer of mercy in my life. When I’m moving from event to event and task to task, it’s hard to pay attention to the people around me. And when I’m not looking and listening for people’s needs, it’s nearly impossible to be merciful.

Second, don’t be offended by the sins of others. I can’t say, “Go clean up your life, and then I will accept you.” No—mercy is unconditional! If I’m going to show mercy to people, I can’t be offended by them. I can’t minister to people if I’m looking down on them.

Jesus wasn’t offended by people’s sins. In fact, he hung out with the worst kinds of sinners. He was even accused of “guilt by association” because he spent time with people who were corrupt, unloving, and manipulative.

This doesn’t mean Jesus approved of everything they did. God doesn’t approve of everything I do, but he accepts me completely. Showing mercy doesn’t mean I say everything someone does is okay. Drug addiction and adultery, for example, are not okay.

But I can still show mercy. I can do for others what Christ has done for me.

“Most importantly, love each other deeply. Love has a way of not looking at others’ sins” (1 Peter 4:8 ICB).

In summary, in our increasingly unkind world, my greatest Christian witness is to show others mercy. Our world is unmerciful and unforgiving. It seems the highest form of humor is the put-down. When others see me showing mercy, especially considering how rude and mean society has become, they will see an example of, “what a Christian is like.” God’s word tells me to be merciful, just as my Father is. There are four things I can do to build a lifestyle of mercy. The first two are: First, start looking and listening for people’s needs, the needs of people in my Oikos (my neighborhood, work, and family). Mercy always begins with awareness. If I’m not aware, then I don’t care. God’s word also tells me to Look out for one another’s interests, not just my own. I don’t struggle to be merciful because I’m a bad person. It’s because I’m too busy. Busyness is the number one destroyer of mercy in my life. When I’m not looking and listening for people’s needs, it’s nearly impossible to be merciful. Second, don’t be offended by the sins of others. I can’t say, “Go clean up your life, and then I will accept you.” No—mercy is unconditional! I can’t minister if I’m looking down on them. Jesus wasn’t offended by people’s sins. He hung out with the worst kinds of sinners. This doesn’t mean Jesus approved of everything they did. God doesn’t approve of everything I do, but he accepts me completely. But I can still show mercy. I can do for others what Christ has done for me.

I am to be compassionate, merciful and loving toward others. I need to help and give without expecting a return. I’ll never regret it. I need to live out this God-created identity the way the Father lives toward me, generously and graciously, even when I'm at my worst. My Father is kind; so I should be kind.