Wait for the Lord

A challenge for many of us is the instruction to “wait for the Lord.” Waiting can be a hugely difficult challenge.

The word “wait” means to hope, to anticipate, and to trust. Waiting requires faith, patience, humility, meekness, long-suffering, keeping the commandments, and enduring to the end.

Here are only three Bible verses about waiting for the Lord:

In the path of your justice, Lord, we wait for you; with all our being, we long for your name and your acclaim. (Isa 26:8 CEB)

Notice that we wait for the Lord IN THE PATH OF HIS JUSTICE! With every fiber of our being, we long to bring glory and honor to the Lord’s Name.

O Lord, be gracious to us; we have waited for You. Be our strength every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble. (Isa 33:2 MEV)

In this Scripture verse, Isaiah reminds the Lord that he has waited for the Lord. He asks for the Lord’s strength every day, and for salvation in times of trouble. We know that the Lord heard and answered those prayers.

Therefore be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains. ⁸You too be patient; strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near. (Jam 5:7-8 NASB)

In the book of James, we’re reminded to be patient and wait for the Lord. We’re reminded of the patience of the farmer, who waits for the harvest of the seeds he planted. We are encouraged to be patient, just like that farmer. And we are encouraged that the Lord’s deliverance is close at hand. Be strong and steadfast; hang on!

The Righteous Abide Forever

What does it mean to ‘abide forever’? This is talking about living in eternity in bliss and joy, in the center of eternal glory with a holy God and Savior. There is no sin, sickness, suffering, or misery of any kind with the Lord. Death will be unknown.

Surely the righteous will never be shaken; they will be remembered forever. (Ps 112:6 NIV)

The righteous will never be upset or knocked off balance, spiritually, because they cling to this promise and it strengthens them. Righteous people will be remembered forever.

The mentioning of the righteous is a blessing, but the name of the wicked will rot. (Pro 10:7 NASB)

Remembering the life of a righteous person is a blessing.

Throw your burden upon the Lord, and he will sustain you. He will never allow the godly to be shaken. (Ps 55:22 NET)

When we rely upon the Lord, He will support and uphold us. He will not allow us to be surprised because He knows how to warn us and to prepare us for difficult battles ahead.

And our faithfulness to Him and to His Word will be repaid by untold blessings. Glory to God!

We’re Not Fighting Flesh & Blood

Sometimes, we need to remind ourselves that, as believers, we are not battling with human beings but with unseen enemies. This is an important concept to keep in mind, because we can make the all too easy error of considering other human beings as our enemies.

This is not the heart of God. This is not why Jesus came to earth! Let’s turn to the Scriptures and meditate.

We aren’t fighting against human enemies but against rulers, authorities, forces of cosmic darkness, and spiritual powers of evil in the heavens. (Eph 6:12 CEB)

As the verse above, in Ephesians, reminds us: we’re fighting against forces of celestial darkness and unseen powers of evil in the heavens. This is a spiritual battle in which we need the spiritual weapons that the Lord has given to all believers.

For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. ⁴For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. ⁵We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ . . . (2 Cor 10:3-5 ESV)

The Lord has His own battle plan which we would do well to follow. The first part of our battle involves controlling our own flesh and our own reactions. We must make sure that our thoughts are obedient to Jesus Christ and His teachings.

. . . to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me. (Ac 26:18 ESV)

We have already turned away from darkness and invited the Lord of Light into our lives. We have received forgiveness of sins and a place among all who have been sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ. Our calling is to introduce other people to the same Lord and Savior who has rescued each one of us.

In their case, the god of this world has blinded the minds of those who do not believe to keep them from seeing the light of the glorious gospel of the Messiah, who is the image of God. (2 Cor 4:4 ISV)

We must remember that unsaved people have blinders on their eyes to prevent them from seeing the light of the gospel of Good News. Our prayers and ministry to these people is designed to dissolve those blinders and help them to see the Truth, and to accept their Savior and Redeemer.

Learn about your spiritual weapons and start using them today, dear brothers and sisters.

The Wise Bring Calm

Those who serve the Lord Jesus Christ, who are gaining spiritual maturity, exhibit the spiritual gift of wisdom. Wisdom is a highly valued trait according to Biblical values.

Wisdom may be called by various names, such as:

Insight
Perception
Astuteness
Prudence
Understanding

Fools give full vent to their rage, but the wise bring calm in the end. (Pro 29:11 NIV, emphasis added)

A wise person, led by the Spirit of the Lord, will bring peace, quiet and tranquility to any circumstance or situation. Such a person ushers into the atmosphere the presence of the Prince of Peace. Glory to God!

Wise people keep what they know to themselves, but fools can’t keep from showing how foolish they are. (Pro 12:23 NCV)

One of the attributes of wisdom, is that a wise person knows how to be discreet and how to be responsible with information that they have. This type of person uses good spiritual judgment and discrimination.

Wisdom rests in the heart of a man of understanding, but it makes itself known even in the midst of fools. (Pro 14:33 ESV)

A wise person who finds themselves in a presence of imprudent, thoughtless people will still be able to exert a positive, calming influence upon the environment and bring a sense of serenity into it. This is a result of the godly influence of spiritual wisdom authored by the Holy Spirit, which is resting upon the spiritually wise person. Their words and actions will bring a positive, unseen change into the atmosphere.

Based upon these Bible verses and today’s meditation, we can understand why pursuing the gift of spiritual wisdom is vital in the life of a mature Christian. For those who yearn to deepen and mature their relationship with the Lord, this is a worthy spiritual goal.

Wherever you are in your walk with the Lord, His grace and His love overshadow and surround you. He hears and answers your prayers. So rejoice!

Pursue the Spirit of Wisdom

In this day and age, it’s more important than ever to pursue the Spirit of Wisdom.

I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah, the most glorious Father, would give you a wise spirit, along with revelation that comes through knowing the Messiah fully. (Eph 1:17 ISV)

Wisdom accomplishes many things in the life of a believer. Among its many blessings is revelation insight which is a result and a fruit of knowing the Savior entirely and fully. This is talking about an experiential knowledge of the Lord.

But the wisdom that comes from above leads us to be pure, friendly, gentle, sensible, kind, helpful, genuine, and sincere. ¹⁸When peacemakers plant seeds of peace, they will harvest justice. (Jas 3:17-18 CEV)

Familiarity with the Spirit of Wisdom leads us to acquire these precious character strengths named in James 3:17-18. We who serve the Prince of Peace plant seeds of peace—which in turn harvest JUSTICE! Praise the Lord!

Justice means integrity, righteousness, and honesty.

. . . for His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. (2 Pet 1:3 NASB)

Through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence (Jesus), we receive the blessings of EVERYTHING that we need for a safe and good life as well as for our spiritual blessing (godliness).

Study the Bible and read through the book of Proverbs regularly. Reading one Proverb per day will take you through the book of Proverbs every month. Add to that study, reading other Bible verses pertaining to wisdom throughout the Bible. This is how you may pursue the Spirit of Wisdom.

Add to that your prayers asking the Lord to teach you spiritual wisdom, and He will hear and answer your prayers. Glory to God!

The Lord Humbles & Exalts

Yes, the Lord will humble those who need it, but He is also the God who exalts people, too. He’s the only Being who can make this decision, but we can cooperate with Him by obeying His Word and living by biblical standards.

Let’s read what the Bible says about this.

The Lord sends poverty and wealth; he humbles and he exalts. (1 Sam 2:7 NIV)

If you need financial prosperity or blessings of any kind, turn to the Lord and ask Him for what you need. Find a few Bible passages that address your need and use them in asking the Lord for His help and blessing.

It is God alone who judges; he decides who will rise and who will fall. (Ps 75:7 NLT)

It is truly God, alone, who judges. Remember that. He is the only One we need to please; He is the only One for whom we should live. That’s not to say that we shouldn’t live in peace and harmony with our loved ones, our friends, and our community. We should do that, also.

. . . he sets on high those who are lowly, and those who mourn are lifted to safety. (Job 5:11 ESV)

Those who are meek and submissive to the Lord, attract His attention and His blessings. Those who mourn are lifted from the depths of despair to safety by the loving hand of their Savior and Redeemer. Hallelujah!

Our Work Pleases God

Does it surprise you to realize that our work pleases God? I am making this claim based upon a number of Bible passages. Please join me in my study.

So we built the wall, and the entire wall was joined together up to half its height, for the people had a mind to work. (Neh 4:6 NKJV)

Notice in the above verse that the ‘people had a mind to WORK.’ God blesses the work of our hands! He doesn’t bless laziness or inactivity.

He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper. (Ps 1:3 NKJV, emphasis added)

In the verse above from the first Psalm, notice that whatever a person DOES shall prosper! Observe that the Lord is talking about action or movement here—about a person at work—not someone sitting around and dreaming.

Man goes out to his work and to his labor until the evening. (Ps 104:23 NKJV)

God created a way for every living thing to have sustenance and a way to be blessed. Work is a blessing to mankind.

The works of the Lord are great, studied by all who have pleasure in them. His work is honorable and glorious, and His righteousness endures forever. He has made His wonderful works to be remembered. (Ps 111:2-4 NKJV)

God, our Creator, also worked and that work is described as honorable and glorious. Furthermore, the Lord created His works to be remembered. Glory to God!

. . . comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work. (2 Thes 2:17 NKJV)

“Establish” means to support or sustain. The prayer in 2 Thessalonians (above) is that God will uphold us in our good words and work. God bless you!

Tender & Humble, Contrite Hearts

Our God and Father cares about all of His people, but He especially watches over and saves people with:

tender [loving, gentle, compassionate];
humble [meek, unassuming]; and
contrite [remorseful, repentant] hearts.

Let’s examine some Bible passages on this topic.

“But as for the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the Lord, in this manner you shall speak to him, ‘Thus says the Lord God of Israel: “Concerning the words which you have heard—because your heart was tender, and you humbled yourself before the Lord when you heard what I spoke against this place and against its inhabitants, that they would become a desolation and a curse, and you tore your clothes and wept before Me, I also have heard you,” says the Lord. Surely, therefore, I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace; and your eyes shall not see all the calamity which I will bring on this place.”’” So they brought back word to the king. (2 Kgs 22:18-20 NKJV)

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart—these, O God, You will not despise. (Ps. 51:17 NKJV)

For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.” (Isa 57:15 NKJV)

The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit. (Ps 34:18 NKJV)

God will delay a plan that He has set in place in response to a tender and humble heart. He looks with compassion upon people who are gentle and have repentance in their hearts.

He wants to save and renew all those with remorseful and penitent hearts.

God desires to restore and renew all who have a broken heart, so if this describes your situation, turn to the Lord now. He will prove Himself to be loving, merciful, and forgiving. Hallelujah!

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You are the Deciding Vote! In your life, you can make decisions that will help you and bless you.

Month: April 2023