Grace for a Season of Waiting

For some time now I have been seeking to hear and know God's will regarding something specific in my life; something which I've been talking with Him about in prayer. So far, no answer. Prayer, but no clear response. Maybe some of you, like me, are in a season of waiting to hear from God, or, you know someone who is. This morning (yes, over some good Sumatra coffee with Jesus), I read the following quote from a particular commentator regarding the testing of Abraham's faith in Genesis 22. Perhaps we can apply what he writes to our season of waiting for God's wisdom and will to be revealed to us.

"Abraham was suddenly confronted with that most awesome of problems - a self-contradictory God. Unbelief stumbles over such problems while mature faith waits to see how the distant recesses of the wisdom of God hidden form human reason and understanding will be made known. But the waiting can be excruciating and many people, rather than bear the pain, simply abandon the faith."

God bless with more of His grace for our season of waiting. He will answer. He will reveal His will and wisdom to us. Let's not settle for anything less than this. God bless you and your families this Advent and Christmas!

In God's Unshakable Love,

Mike

A Vision and Deepening Conviction

As we move into this season of Advent, truly a season of God-breakthrough in this world, I believe I am receiving and experiencing a deepening conviction and vision from God; something not merely for me and my family, but for the ARC, and beyond the ARC, for the body of Christ. It is related to the theme for the 2011 ARC Gatherings - Prayer - Ushering in a Kingdom Uprising.

Here it is: I believe the Lord longs to see an increase in the number of ARC members (and other followers of Jesus in the larger body of Christ) praying consistently and intentionally that we might experience an increase of God breakthroughs and answers, which will pull us, our families and churches, and not-yet Christians further out into the flow of God's purposes for our lives.

The very fact that prayer is the thing we so easily skip over, or limit in some way in our own lives and in our meetings of all sorts, may be a clue to its power; and why the enemy is so afraid of a praying church. For so many of us here in the West, though our words may not say it, our practice does: Prayer is not productive.

Programs, however, are productive - that's what our practice says we truly believe. I am not trying to dump on any of us, of come with some heavy, condemning, critical word. Don't abandon the programs God has called you to implement. But don't abandon prayer either. In fact, let's ratchet up our prayer a few notches. Let's ask God, as the disciples did, "Lord, teach us to pray," and then let's listen to what He says to us - and then let's obey what He says to us.

Prayer, not programs, is going to be the key in the coming years to our being an alliance of like-minded leaders and churches through whom God can think, speak, and act in the world for His Kingdom purposes. God is at work in the world. God is carrying out His mission. Prayer will position us to hear, cooperate, and participate with the Lord in what it is He is doing. Lord, teach us to pray! Lord, teach us to know and exercise in prayer the authority You have given us in the name of Christ!