Blueprints for the Waiting Room

Today's message was Part 2 of the Under Construction series, entitled Ready and Waiting:

Godly waiting is active, not just sitting and wishing. The steps that follow are What to Do When You're on Hold.

1. Trust God's Power
• Abraham believed God could
1. bring things back from the dead, and
2. create things which didn't exist before
• God's power covers everything.
• ACTION STEP: BELIEVE - At a bare minimum, say "God could do it."
2. Trust God's Promises
• Move from "God is able" to "God is willing."
• "I see I can't BUT God said he would."
• Get a promise from God's Word and cling to it.
• It's not "I don't have time to read the Bible." It is "Bible reading is not a priority for me."
• In these difficult days, Bible reading MUST become a priority, so that we'll know what promises there are for us.
• God's Word keeps you off the "flaky" side.
  
• Always free to be yourself in the "prayer closet," but go in there with a promise!
• ACTION STEP: CLAIM - claim a promise from God
3. Trust God's Plan
   
• God doesn't say to ignore the facts; he says to look at the facts, then look beyond them
• God's plan is bigger than your situation, e.g. God is bigger than the economy.
• You may not come out pretty, but you will come out
• Don't tell God what can't be done
• If you're not active, you're not waiting on God; he's waiting on you.
• Persist = keep trying, Exist = sitting around
• Keep planting the seed - act in faith
• if you have money issues - keep giving in faith, buy lunch for someone in need, help someone else
• don't give up, trust that God will take care of you
  
• ACTION STEP: PERSIST
  
4. Trust God's Process
   
• Thank God in advance for what's coming
• As you thank Him, your faith grows stronger.
• Thanking God in advance is often the key to a breakthrough
• Thank Him verbally, musically, any way you can
• Jesus said, "everything you ask and pray for, believe that you have it already." - Mark 11:24 (NJB)
• While waiting, the enemy will try to discourage you. The worse it comes, the more you praise God.
• "Thank you that you are going to..."
• ACTION STEP: THANK (in advance)
  

Where to begin claiming: Isaiah 41:10