who asked for more photos? oh, shannon did. after that lovely photo of maxx and millie heading off to rock-tober at leon (a concert of the various independent bands from their high school) perhaps i can go back to stock photography...
you may recall that my post last week was about how my goal this year was to LINGER and then i discovered that the word “wait” in the hebrew language actually means “to linger”. LINGER was my goal...but i meant it in the “linger in the coffee shop talking to friends” kind of way. but God meant it in the real sense of the word (the WORD actually). He wanted me to learn to LINGER, the hebrew sense. and then He wanted me to learn what that really means... because i am doing this AWESOME Bible study in my wednesday morning group. live a praying life by jennifer kennedy dean. week 6 is a whole week on waiting. and how it isn’t really waiting on God. that He is at work in the spiritual world while we don’t always see it in the material world because he is not passing time, He is fulfilling time. He fills the time with all the things that He needs to have happen for His will to be done. and we should never confuse His will with His ways. because a lot of the time His ways look absolutely contrary to His will.
like the story of joseph. God revealed His will of joseph saving his family and his family bowing down to him. and then for the next 13 years things didn’t look like they were heading in that direction. sold into slavery, thrown into prison, a country away from home. looked like the direct opposite of God’s will. but it was all moving God’s plan forward. just not in any way WE would have done it. something about His thought and His ways being higher than ours. i read that somewhere...
and then the story of lazarus’ death. and this little line that i had never noticed in the account...
john 11: 5-7
Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days,
and then he said to his disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”
Jesus tarried because He loved mary, martha and lazarus. and while he was tarrying things were getting into place. lazarus was dying. he was dead for three days (which would be a little sign of another death that was coming) and by that time the entire jewish community in the region would be at the house for the funeral proceedings. more people to see this miracle that was to come. plus mary and martha already knew that Jesus could heal the sick. they had heard that he had raised the dead (the newly dead). but they had not realized that he could raise someone that had been dead for three days (which was the actual definition of DEAD to a jewish person. three days had to go by before you were REALLY TRULY DEAD. so lazarus was really truly three days of DEAD.)
so when you are waiting on God there are some things to remember...
- you are waiting because He loves you.
- He is at work. even though it is most likely you can’t see Him at work in the material world.
- His ways don’t always look like they are taking you to His will.
- He may be wanting to show you a bigger picture of Himself.
all of these reasons seem to make the LINGERING seem more loving on His part, fraught with purpose, extremely profitable, and downright NECESSARY for accomplishing all the things that it needs to accomplish.
isaiah 55:8-13
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the LORD.
“As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.
You will go out in joy
and be led forth in peace;
the mountains and hills
will burst into song before you,
and all the trees of the field
will clap their hands.
Instead of the thornbush will grow the juniper,
and instead of briers the myrtle will grow.
This will be for the LORD’s renown,
for an everlasting sign,
that will endure forever.”
i am waiting on the juniper and the myrtle. both of which are not mere bushes (which do not last long and are painful) but juniper and myrtle are trees. juniper is a fir tree. an evergreen. used to build a temple. and trees have deep roots. His purpose is to grow something with roots. something that lasts. that grows tall and deep. something without thorns. i am waiting on something everlasting. and i am waiting because He loves me. i am waiting to see the bigger picture of who He was, is and will be...
