Waiting on God....

  1 JN. 5:14-15; 1PET. 3:7; PROV. 28:9; JS. 1:6-7; MATT. 5:23-25

SUBJECT: HINDRANCES TO PRAYER

                                                           

THEME: God Truly Does Desire to Say “Yes” to Us When We Pray. We must Recognize the “Wait” Answers from the Lord are Opportunities to Grow in our Prayer Relationship.  

When our prayers aren't answered in the way we want—generally speaking, when we receive a wait answer—we sometimes become discouraged, perhaps even resentful. What we fail to recognize is that “wait” answers are tremendous teaching tools. They can reveal to us what actions we should take or how we should grow in our relationship with the Lord.

In this study we will focus on God's wait answers to see what they might tell us. I am assuming that you are in right relationship with God. The person who has not accepted Jesus Christ as Savior or who is in willful rebellion against God is not a person who can expect positive answers from God. God's answer is likely to be a repeated “no” until the person surrenders his or her life fully to Christ.

Being a believer, however, and even desiring to live in right relationship with God does not always ensure that we will have all of our prayers answered with a yes. There are certain practical and specific reasons why God doesn't always say “yes” to Christians.

CONSIDER GOD'S “WAIT” ANSWERS TO OUR PRAYERS....

God desires for us to want Him more than we want any person, position, or object. He wants us to trust Him explicitly and fully. He wants us to be in a deep, personal, and intimate relationship with Him, totally relying upon Him to meet our needs and guide us on a daily basis. Consider these factors as reasons God may say "wait"....

A.  THE FACTOR OF GOD HIMSELF.

Exodus 20:2-3, I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. [3] Thou shalt have no other gods before me.  

Exodus 20:5, Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;

  1. To Refocus Us on God Himself. 

      A.  Sometimes God answers wait so that we will refocus totally upon Him and not on the object of our desire.

      B.  God wants us to see Him as the source of our supply and know that a relationship with Him is far more valuable than any answered prayer could ever be.

   2. To Deepened Our Trust in God.

Sometimes God answers wait so that we might trust Him more fully.

       A.  We Would Become Arrogant If God Answered Every Prayer Immediately.

If God immediately said “yes” to all of our prayers, we might soon think that His answers were based on our own righteousness, rather than upon His mercy and grace.

        B.  We Would Become Stronger in Faith If God Answers “Wait” to Some Prayers.

               1.  In giving us “wait” answers, God is building into us a stronger foundation of faith, one that will endure all circumstances, challenges, persecutions and trials.  (See “grace” & “patience” Rom. 5:1-5).

               2.  God denied Job an immediate answer to his desire to know what he had done to deserve the awesome trials he was experiencing. 

               3.  Certainly his friends’ assertion that all suffering was the result of sin was not true in Job’s case. 

               4.  In fact God never did directly answer the question of human suffering in the book of Job, but God did finally deepen Job’s trust in Him and vindicate his faith. 

Job 13:15, Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him.

               5.  Instead of answering the prayer request, God magnified his Power, Majesty, Glory, Wisdom, Providence, and Sovereignty so vividly that it was tantamount to a sight of the great God.  This was enough for Job!  (Job. 42:1-10).

B.  THE FACTOR OF OUR SPIRITUAL STATE.

Psalm 118:8-9, It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.

Sometimes God says “wait;” but why?  It is:

   1.  To Adjust Our Attitudes.

        A.  Sometimes God answers wait so that our attitude will be adjusted and refined to more accurately reflect the attitude of Christ Jesus.

        B.  Wrong attitudes may cause us to turn away from God, once we get what we desire.

              — God evaluates our motives and desires when we request things of him.

              — It may be that our attitude about time, money, possessions, and talents isn’t Christ-like and therefore the Lord waits to mature us in the meantime.

        C.  God may need for us to have a different attitude so that we will know how best to use the blessing He is about to give us.

   2.  To Prepare Us to Receive His Answer.

At other times, we must mature in some way so that we can handle the blessing.

        A.  A young child may want a pocketknife, but a wise parent knows that a pocketknife is not an appropriate gift for a young child.

        B.  The parent waits until the child is older and can use the pocketknife properly without causing injury to himself or others.

        C.  Likewise, God may delay His answer to our prayer until we are better prepared to accept it.

   3.  To Train Us in Patience and Obedience.

        A.  Delays Beyond Our Control Test Our Patience and Obedience.

1 Samuel 13:8-9, And he [Saul] tarried seven days, according to the set time that Samuel had appointed: but Samuel came not to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him. [9] And Saul said, Bring hither a burnt offering to me, and peace offerings. And he offered the burnt offering.

             1.  It Is Difficult to Trust God When You Feel Your Resources Slipping Away.

                   — When Saul felt that time was running out, he became impatient with God's timing.

                   — In thinking that the ritual was all he needed, he substituted the ritual for faith in God.

             2.  When Faced with a Difficult Decision, Don't Allow Impatience to Drive You to Disobey God.

                   — When you know what God wants, follow his plan regardless of the consequences.

                   — God often uses delays to test our obedience and patience.

                   — Often this is the case with our prayer life, because we are most obedient when we really want something from God.

        B.  Even Difficult Circumstances Can Be God's Training Tools.

James 1:2-3, My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

             1.  James Tells Us to Turn Our Hardships into Times of Learning.

Tough times can teach us perseverance and how to pray continually.

             2.  We Can't Really Know the Depth of Our Character until We See How We React under Pressure.

It is easy to be kind to others when everything is going well, but can we still be kind when others are treating us unfairly?

             3.  God Wants to Make Us Mature and Complete, Not to Keep Us from All Pain.

                    A.  Instead of complaining about our struggles, we should see them as opportunities for growth.

                            — Thank God for promising to be with you in rough times.

                            — Ask him to help you solve your problems prayerfully or give you the strength to endure them.

                    B.  Then be prayerfully patient. God will not leave you alone with your problems; he will stay close and help you grow, but you must maintain a prayerful attitude.

C.  THE FACTOR OF GOD’S PLANS.

Isaiah 2:17-18, And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. [18] And the idols he shall utterly abolish. 

   1.  Unprepared Aspects of His Plan.

Sometimes God answers wait because certain aspects of His desire for us are yet to be put into place.

      A.  Unprepared People.

Another person or group of people may be involved in the blessing. God may need to work in their hearts before He can give us what He desires us to have.

      B.  Unresolved Hindrances.

             1.  He needs to remove the hindrances that keep His will from being enacted.

             2.  To “hinder” literally means to break up, or to place an obstacle in the road, so that our way is impeded.

             3.  God may need to do some “removal work” in the heart of another person before that person can share in our blessing.

             4.  Unresolved Hindrances Will Negatively Affect Personal Revival in Our Lives. 

 

                   A.  Revival can be realized in the individual believers life if they meet God’s conditions for revival.  No one but us can hinder this!

Rev. 3:20, Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

                   B.  But it is quit a different matter when it comes to a church experiencing revival. 

2 Chron. 7:14, If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

                            1.  One sour saint can spoil it for everyone collectively.

                            2.  Many prayers for corporate revival go seemingly unanswered because of the rotten attitudes of God’s people.

 

                   C. Still yet, personal revival is renewed by obeying God.

2 Chron. 31:20-21, And thus did Hezekiah throughout all Judah, and wrought that which was good and right and truth before the Lord his God. [21] And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and in the law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart, and prospered. 

                            1.  Because Hezekiah did “that which was good and right and truth before the Lord his God,” he influenced the people of Judah in spiritual revival, renewal, and reforms.

                            2.  Hezekiah’s actions serve as a model of personal renewal for us: (1) he remembered God's compassion (2 Chron. 30:9); (2) he kept going despite ridicule (2 Chron. 30:10); (3) he aggressively removed evil influences from his life (2 Chron. 30:14; 31:1); (4) he interceded for the people, asking for the Lord's pardon (2 Chron. 30:18-20); (5) he was open to spontaneity in worship (2 Chron. 30:23); (6) he contributed generously to God's work (2 Chron. 31:3).

                            3.  If any of these are lacking in your life, consider how you might apply them and renew your commitment to God. God will say “yes” when these various aspects are in place in our spiritual lives.

   2.  Unrealized Aspects of His Plan.

Isaiah 26:3-4, Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. [4] Trust ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength:   

Isaiah 64:4, For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.

          A.  Finally, God sometimes answers wait because He is preparing for an even greater blessing than the one for which we asked.

          B.  This certainly was true in the case of Lazarus. Jesus knew that Lazarus was ill, and He could have gone to him to heal him before he died. Instead, Jesus waited until Lazarus had died so that He might raise him from the dead as a definitive sign of His authority over death and the assurance of our resurrection in Christ. (See John 11:1–45.)  

C.     Those who craved the Lord’s presence to prevent death were thinking too small!

·The Lord Jesus had a greater miracle in mind for the glory of God.  If he had answered them according to what they were asking, they would only have known God’s power to heal the sick.

·But because the Lord drew out their faith they received assurance that he is able to also raise the dead. 

          D.  Sometimes the Lord delays because of unrealized aspects of his glorious plan.

E.     God greatly desires to magnify his strength in our lives!

·We must learn to dream bigger and expect greater things from him. 

·2 Chron. 16:9, For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him….

·There is no telling what the Lord would do if he had opportunity through our faith in him!

 Receiving a “wait” answer from God does not signal a time to be discouraged, perplexed, or frustrated with prayer. What we fail to recognize is that “wait” answers are tremendous teaching tools. They can reveal to us what actions we should take or how we should grow in our relationship with the Lord. Instead of resenting the Lord for apparently delaying, reinforce your confidence in His wisdom, love, and power. He really does have our best and highest interest in mind! Use the “waiting period” to draw closer to the Lord Himself—seek His face for who He is and not merely for what He will give us. Think about it…why would God give us anything that we would want more than Himself? Prayer is a relationship nurturing tool with the Lord God. Do not miss this great reality. Enjoy Him as you spend time with Him in prayer. He knows your needs and will meet those needs in His perfect timing. Waiting on the Lord is not a bad thing; it is an opportunity to know the Lord better.