The Art of Waiting

The Lord speaks to us in many ways. Henry Blackaby explained it this way, “God speaks by the Holy Spirit through the Bible, prayer, circumstances and the church to reveal His purposes and His ways.” (Experiencing God, page 57) I have found this to be an absolute truth and is individualized, in one degree or another, to each of us based on how He has wired our personalities.

For us, it’s mostly through funds for a given project. It does not matter if it’s connected to the ministry or the business, if there is no money to start a project, then it normally means we are to wait to move forward. Another common way is through open or closed doors of opportunity. When the second largest drag racing organization in the world asked us to stream their sportsman series, we knew it would take an extra ordinary move of our Father to provide for all we needed…and He did.

Even when it seems like everything is right to move forward, He may still want us to wait. The funding and opportunity may be there, but the timing might be wrong. This is when our relationship with the Lord becomes paramount. It often takes just as much faith to stay in the boat as it does to step out of it. I can only explain it as a halt or uneasiness in my spirit. 99% of the time, confirmation to wait or move forward, comes from the one person I trust completely, my wife Joanne.

I wished I had more time to expand on this topic, there is so much more to understanding His ways than a few simple statements. In the end, it a boils down to two things, relationship with our Lord and faith in His love for us. In Jeremiah 29:11 the Lord says this, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

If you are seeking the Lord with all of your being, I do not believe is is possible to miss His will for your life.

Blessings

The Art of Waiting
by Os Hillman

“By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them….” Exodus 13:21

How are you at waiting on God? How do you determine if God is giving you the green light to move forward? Many workplace believers make the mistake of adding up all the pluses and then concluding that God has given them the green light. Several factors go into making a decision from the Lord.

It is important to do three things before you make a decision on a matter. First, you should gather facts. Fact gathering allows you to determine all the realities of a given situation. However, this does not ultimately drive your decision, but it can put a stop to it. For instance, if you were planning to build a shopping center and you knew the only way to lease the space was to rent to a porn shop, your decision would be made. God would not lead you to enter into unrighteous ventures.

Second, is the Holy Spirit guiding you in your decision? “If the Lord delights in a man’s way, He makes his steps firm” (Ps. 37:23). George Mueller cites that the steps are also “by the Lord.” God puts hedges around us, but many times we bull our way through the hedges under the guise of tenacity and perseverance. This too is unrighteousness. One wise workplace believer stated that the greatest success one can have in business is to know when it is time to pull the plug rather than keep forcing a situation. Not all businesses last forever.

Third, has your decision been confirmed? God has placed others around us to be used as instruments in our lives to confirm decisions and keep us from the deceit of our own heart. “Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses” (2 Cor. 13:1b). This is God’s way of keeping us within the hedge of His protection.

“Write your plans in pencil and give God the eraser.”