Disciplined Spirituality

 

SylviaLet's face it. Waiting is hard.

The good news is it is not up to us.  The Holy Spirit enables us to wait. Gal 5:5 "Through the Spirit we eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope." Through the Spirit by faith... that means we get the opportunity to draw nearer the Holy Spirit while we wait for God to work our miracle(s) of righteousness. That puts my focus where it should be... on Him, not myself or others. It is usually stubborn family situations that get to me, of course, for they have been going on the longest and require the most patient endurance in the midst of waiting.  Waiting is an invitation to stillness. 

A faithful brother added this insight to the subject of waiting on God: "The Hebrew word 'qavah,' which is translated 'wait' in Isaiah 40:31, means 'to bind together like a cord.' As we wait on the Lord in stillness before Him with our hearts in a quiet state, it is like adding strands to a rope to strengthen it. Picture the process of making a rope by twisting or weaving (binding) thin cords together to form the rope. The more strands that are twisted or woven together in a rope, the greater its strength. We can assume that the more we are still to listen to God, the stronger we become. Ecclesiastes 4:12 says '... a cord of three strands is not quickly broken.'

"As we wait, we can choose to soak in the Lord Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit. David wrote that he had "quieted his soul like a weaned child on his mother's breast." God speaks to our spirits, and our ears are trained to hear His voice (Isa 50:4). The mind wants to "go go go," but God says this is serious error (Isa 30). Our noisy souls must be told to be quiet and submit to our spirits and to God's Spirit. In this age of incessant cell phones, texting, Internet, and TV, we have to choose to be intentional to wait to hear God's still small voice." 

What is God trying to say to you about who He is and who you are in Him during this time of waiting? 

Two Scriptural examples of people who did not wait on God show us the disastrous consequences of not waiting. God took the kingdom from Saul because of his impatience (1 Sam 13:8-14). When God's people forgot Him and did not wait for His counsel, He sent upon them wasting disease or leanness of soul (Ps 106:13,15). You are probably painfully aware of times when you did not seek God's counsel and ran ahead of Him. You have repented of these and asked God's forgiveness. Ask Him to encourage you when you are impatient with waiting for the answer to prayer that you have desired the longest. Ask Him to give you grace to keep your hope fixed in the God-of-the-impossible.

Disciplined Audio & Video

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Disciplined Music

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Reflections to Consider

  • Warfare Spirituality

    The Trinity function as farmers of our souls, actively caring for God’s creation: an ongoing, radical reclamation of His creation. Read More
  • Corporate Spirituality

    Encouragement, Accountability, and Worship Solitude, community and ministry are three areas requiring balance and integration in the Christian walk. The Read More
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Disciplined Publications

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Publications

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Music

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Disciplined Reflection

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Audio & Video

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Favorites

  • Praise Adonai by Paul Baloche +

    Who is like Him The Lion and the Lamb Seated on the throne Mountains bow down Every ocean roars To the Lord of hosts  Read More
  • An Interview with Paul Washer by Tim Challies +

    You probably know Paul Washer as the man who preached the infamous "Shocking Youth Message," a sermon that has tallied Read More
  • Glorious by Paul Baloche +

    Look inside the mysterySee the empty crossSee the risen SaviorVictorious and strong Read More
  • Paul's Prayers +

    How do we pray? What should we pray for? Yes, there is the Lord's prayer--Jesus teaching his disciples, and us, Read More
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Hidden Blessings

  • Joy Will Find A Way: Bruce Cockburn +

    Bruce Cockburn’s song Joy Will Find A Way describes the way joy from love can transform one’s life. make me Read More
  • Shepherd's Joy by Luther Jackson Middle School Advanced Chorus +

    Read More
  • Joy to the World! by Surfjan Stevens +

    Joy to the World , the Lord is come!Let earth receive her King;Let every heart prepare Him room,And Heaven and nature Read More
  • The joy of the Lord is my strength by Douglas Miller +

    The joy of the LORD is my strengthThe joy of the LORD is my strengthThe joy of the LORD is Read More
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