'WHEN GOD SEEMS INACTIVE'

"DANGEROUS PRAYERS'

Rev. Juliet Schimpf By Rev. Juliet Schimpf     ___________________________ Broadcast Notes

_______________________________________

LINK to CFRA broadcast of Sunday, February 28^th, 201)

http://proxy.autopod.ca/podcasts/chum/6/40721/good_news_198_feb28.mp3

___________________________________  

'When God Seems Inactive' 

1.       SILENCE IS NOT ABSENCE

2.      A DELAY IS NOT A DENIAL

3.      WAITING IS NOT A WASTE

1.       SILENCE IS NOT ABSENCE

John 11:^3 “So the two sisters sent a message to Jesus telling him, “Lord, your dear friend is very sick.”  ⁴ But when Jesus heard about it he said, “Lazarus’s sickness will not end in death. No, it happened for the glory of God so that the Son of God will receive glory from this.” ⁵ So although Jesus loved Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, ⁶ he stayed where he was for the next two days.” 

·         WHEN GOD SEEMS SILENT, IT DOES NOT MEAN THAT HE IS ABSENT!

·         GOD SEEMED INACTIVE/SILENT WHEN CHRIST WAS ON CROSS:

o   “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?”

o   BUT GOD WAS PRESENT!  “HE WILL NEVER LEAVE US NOR FORSAKE US.”

o   WHEN GOD DOESN’T MAKE SENSE, WE NEED TO TRUST HIM THE MOST.”

o   PROV. 19 “MANY ARE THE PLANS IN A PERSON’S HEART, BUT IT IS THE LORD’S PURPOSE THAT PREVAILS.”

§  WE DON’T PLACE OUR FAITH IN OUR PLANS; WE PLACE OUR FAITH AND HOPE IN GOD’S PURPOSE!

o   ROMANS 8:  “GOD CAUSES EVERYTHING TO WORK TOGETHER FOR THE GOOD OF THOSE WHO LOVE GOD AND ARE CALLED ACCORDING TO HIS PURPOSE.”

2.      DELAYS ARE NOT DENIALS

GOD’S DELAYS ARE NOT NECSSARILY GOD’S DENIALS

·         JUST BECAUSE HE HASN’T DONE IT YET DOESN’T MEAN HE WON’T EVENTUALLY.

·         JESUS SAID ABOUT LAZARUS:  HIS SICKNESS WILL NOT END IN DEATH….IT IS GOD’S PURPOSE TO GLORIFY HIS SON.”

·         GOD IS STILL IN CONTROL…..

·         A DIVINE DELAY!!!!

·         LAZARUS FIGHTS FOR HIS LAST BREATH, AND DIES….

·         YET JESUS IS OUT HEALING ROMAN CENTURANS!  WHAT?  NOT “THE ONE HE LOVES”?

·         JESUS DELAYS………

o   PAST THE DEATH OF LAZARUS

o   PAST THE BURIAL CEREMONY

o   PAST THE 3 DAYS (THEY BELIEVED THE SPIRIT OF CORPSE HOVERED OVER CORPSE FOR 3 DAYS ONLY)

o   JESUS ARRIVED ON DAY 4

o   MARTHA IS HURT AND ANGRY:  VERSE 20—“IF YOU’D BEEN HERE, MY BROTHER WOULDN’T HAVE DIED….”

o   BUT

o   “BUT I KNOW—EVEN NOW—GOD WILL GIVE YOU(JESUS) WHATEVER YOU ASK.”

WHY WOULD GOD DELAY HIS ANSWER TO OUR PRAYERS?

      1.  HE IS READYING US TO RECEIVE HIS BEST….

WE THINK THAT GOD IS BUSY GETTING THE BLESSING READY FOR US; GOD IS ACTUALLY GETTING US READY FOR THE BLESSING

2.  GOD IS PREPARING THE CIRCUMSTANCES…

     3.  GOD IS PROTECTING US WHILE WE WAIT

     4.  IF GOD ALWAYS MET YOUR EXPETATIONS, WE WOULD NEVER HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO EXCEED THEM!

·         MARTHA THOUGHT THE RESURRECTION WAS AN EVENT—JESUS REVEALED THAT THE RESURRECTION IS A PERSON!

·         MARTHA/MARY WANTED A HEALING------------THIS IS GOOD

·         JESUS EXCEEDED THEIR EXPECTATIONS AND ROSE HIM FROM THE DEAD!------------THIS IS BETTER

·         THE SCENE OF YOUR GREATEST DISAPPOINTMENT CAN BE THE SETTING OF GOD’S GREATEST MIRACLE!

3.      WAITING IS NOT A WASTE!

1.       GOD WANTS TO DO SOMETHING IN YOU BEFORE HE DOES SOMETHING FOR YOU.

2.      EMBRACE—DON’T RUSH—THE SEASON OF WAITING

·         Psalm 37:7 “Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way.”

 

·         Ecclesiastes 3

3 “For everything there is a season,
    a time for every activity under heaven.
² A time to be born and a time to die.
    A time to plant and a time to harvest.
³ A time to kill and a time to heal.
    A time to tear down and a time to build up.
⁴ A time to cry and a time to laugh.
    A time to grieve and a time to dance.
⁵ A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
    A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
⁶ A time to search and a time to quit searching.
    A time to keep and a time to throw away.
⁷ A time to tear and a time to mend.
    A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
⁸ A time to love and a time to hate.
    A time for war and a time for peace.”

 trust, faith,

3.      WAIT IN EXPECTATION

·         Micah 7:7  “But as for me, I will watch expectantly for the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation My God will hear me.”

4.      FEAST ON THE WORD

·         PSALM 130:5  New International Version
“I wait for the LORD, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope.”

NOTE:  WE DON’T INTERPRET GOD’S GOODNESS THROUGH OUR CIRCUMSTANCES; RATHER, WE INTERPRET OUR CIRCUMSTANCES THROUGH GOD’S GOODNESS!

Let’s pray together before we go:

Our Heavenly Father, we thank you that you are in every season of our lives. You are present, and although you might be silent, does not mean that you are absent, for you are always with us. “Where can we flee from your Spirit?”, says the Psalmist.

Thank you, God, that a delay is not necessarily a denial. Sometimes you don’t want to meet our expectations, you want to exceed them.

And so, we choose today to trust; trust not in our plans, but in your ultimate purpose; trust that you are at work and that you work all things for good for those who love you.

We want to thank you that you waste nothing and that includes the waiting season.

I pray for the listeners who are waiting; waiting for a job, waiting for a spouse, waiting for a cure. I pray that they would not rush the wait, that they would linger in it, embrace it and allow it to refine them.

And, I just pray that you would encourage those who are waiting. Encourage them that you, who began a good work in them, will see it to completion.

You are faithful, Father, and I say all this in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. AMEN.

Rev. Juliet Schimpf

____________________________________________________

To listen to the above broadcast, click on the following link:

http://proxy.autopod.ca/podcasts/chum/6/40721/good_news_198_feb28.mp3