Waiting On God - Part 2 - Pursuing Intimacy With God

Waiting On God – Part 2

In Part 1 of our series on Waiting On God, we looked at some examples of real people in the Bible that needed to wait on God. Waiting on God is not easy, but it is vital that we learn to wait on God’s perfect timing.

In Part 2 we will continue to look at more examples of real people in real situations that needed to wait on God.

Waiting On God

Waiting On God – Joseph

Joseph is another good example of someone going through years of difficult circumstances before God rescued him. He went through 13 years of trials, suffering, and injustice. And that was after he was almost killed by his brothers and then sold into slavery by them.

But Joseph stayed faithful to God, despite having to wait a long time for God to deliver him. 13 years is a long time.

God used the 13 years to mold and shape Joseph into the servant He could use greatly. Ultimately Joseph was released from prison and made 2nd in command of all of Egypt. And God used him to preserve the lives of Joseph’s family and the lives of His people Israel.

Waiting On God -David

David went through 17 years of trials. 17 years of fleeing for his life from Saul and his enemies. And David had to wait 17 years from the time he was promised to be made king of Israel until the time he actually became the king.

In Psalm 13 David expressed his struggle of having to wait on God for His deliverance and help.

“How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? And how long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look on me and answer, Lord my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death, and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him, and my foes will rejoice when I fall.” – Psalm 13:1-4

At times David’s faith wavered, and he got tired of waiting for God. But he stayed faithful to God. And God used the years of struggles to mold and shape David to be a “man after God’s heart”.

Waiting On God – Abraham

Abraham had to wait 25 years until God fulfilled His promise of a son. His son Isaac was born when Abraham was 100 years old.

God used that time to mold Abraham to be the faithful servant God wanted him to be. And to be the founding father of God’s people Israel.

Waiting On God – Moses

Moses had to wait 40 years in the wilderness until God called him to deliver His people from Egypt. He probably thought that he had blown it years earlier when he killed an Egyptian for beating one of his fellow Israelites. And Moses had to flee to the wilderness, where he stayed for 40 years. 40 years is a long time to be int eh wilderness. Perhaps Moses thought that he would spend the rest of his life in the wilderness.

Imagine spending 40 years living in a wilderness after making a bad mistake. Most of us would think that God was done with us. But God had plans for Moses, and He used him in a great way.

All of us make mistakes. Some of us make serious mistakes. But God wants to take our mistakes and use them to mold and shape us. So that we can become all that God wants us to be. And so that He can use us for His kingdom and for His glory.

Our Wait to Serve God Full Time

In 1995 I prayed that God would allow me to serve Him full time. I had a strong desire to join God in His kingdom work, and prayed that He would use my wife Nancy and I. And you know what happened ? Nothing.

I continued to run my business, serve in our church, and kept seeking Him and working on my fellowship with Him. Then almost 9 years later, early in 2004, God began to speak into my heart that some day I would sell my business and use our own resources to serve Him.

It took another year and a half and a lot of prayer and time seeking God to discover what God’s plan and vision was. Then it took almost another year and a half to finally start serving full time. All in all I had to wait more than 11 years for the opportunity to serve God full time. And it ended up being very different than I thought it would be.

God’s Call to Missions

In June 2005 our oldest son John and I went on a mission trip with our church to Sao Paulo Brazil, and on that trip God spoke very clearly and strongly in my heart that we would serve Him as missionaries in Brazil. It took another 16 months to prepare for the move. We had to sell my business, get our permanent residence visa for Brazil, sell our house…

Our church in Marietta Georgia had a Brazilian church also, and God provided Portuguese classes for us for 9 months during this preparation time. God also gave me a very clear vision of what He wanted us to do in our missions ministry during this preparation time. It was a vision of what God would do through us, and how He wanted to do it.

The waiting time was very necessary. God changed our hearts during this time. He changed our desires, interests, priorities, and passions. And He poured His love and passion for lost people and for God’s people into us.

In Part 3 of this series of articles on Waiting on God, we will look at the various reasons why we need to wait on God.

Pursuing Intimacy With God is committed to helping you with the most important thing in your life… your intimacy with God , your fellowship with Him, and your partnership with God in His Kingdom work & mission.

There are hundreds of Bible verses and great truths & promises in the Pursuing Intimacy With God studies.

** New Expanded Edition of Pursuing Intimacy With God Bible Studies Book – 40% more material

Pursuing Intimacy With God ebook Kindle version

Salvation: The Requirements for True Salvation