Pastor Stephen Dedman

Category: Trust

Wait For The Promise

Encouragement, Trust

Wait For The Promise

And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, which, He said, “you have heard from Me;”
‭‭Acts‬ ‭1:4‬

Patients

No one likes to wait especially for something great and wonderful. We want what we want right now.  And sometimes we jump ahead and force things to happen on our timing. Waiting on the Lord and His promises is not a simple task for most people.

Jesus instructed the disciples to stay in Jerusalem and wait for the Holy Spirit to come upon them.  That’s all the details they were given.  They didn’t know how long they were going to have to wait.  But what we see them doing is great.  They were together in the upper room praying and seeking the direction of God.  They were spending time together preparing for the next great thing to happen.  They were eagerly awaiting the power of God to come.  They were also taking care of business as they replaced Judas with Matthias. They were focussed on the things of the Lord.

What do you do when you are waiting on the Lord?  It is important to focus on the things of God and never jump ahead of God’s timing.  Waiting is sometimes referred to as suffering, but the suffering is part of our character building.  Patiently waiting on the Lord requires self-control and wisdom.  The reward is worth the wait.  When you are in a waiting period of your life consume yourself with the Word of God, surround yourself with godly people, and focus on doing the Lord’s work.

Prayer

Lord, I will wait patiently on You.  I will seek You and search You with all of my heart.

He Prayed

Trust

He Prayed

And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, He departed and went out to a desolate place, and there He prayed.
‭‭Mark‬ ‭1:35‬

All About His Father’s Business

The disciples knew where to find Jesus. He was always praying. If He wasn’t outside praying to the Father, He was inside praying. It’s no wonder that Judas knew where to tell the guards they could find Jesus praying in the garden. Jesus was always about His Fathers business and always in communication with the Father.

When Jesus was tempted, He prayed. When He faced important decisions, He prayed. He could spend an entire night in prayer.  One reason why He was always in the Father’s will was because He was focused on praying. His earthly ministry’s agenda was dominated by prayer. Prayer was His priority.

We can clearly see why prayer was so important to Jesus. But how important is prayer in our life today?  Do we pray as often as we should?  Do we seek God in prayer for all things?  Is prayer a priority in your everyday Christian life?  Prayer is the most effective tool that a Christian can use. It is the direct line of communication with God. We pray through Jesus because He is our mediator. He takes our prayers to the Father and we pray in the name of Jesus. The prayer of a Christian is always answered. The answer may be yes, no, or wait. God hears your prayers and desires to give you an answer. Just because you didn’t get a prompt answer doesn’t mean you stop seeking God in prayer.  The best thing we can do is spend more time and effort in prayer seeking God’s will and way for our life. Make it a priority.

Prayer

Lord, I need You every hour.  I long to spend time with You.  I want to start my day with You and end my day with You.  Thank you for listening to me.

Peace And Holiness

Encouragement, Faith, Trust

Peace And Holiness

Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭12:14‬ ‭

Only Through Jesus

We are instructed to pursue peace and holiness as we mature in our Christian life.  But notice carefully that without holiness no one will see the Lord. You may be active in church attendance, engaged in spiritual activities, and believe you are a spiritual person, but if you do not have holiness you will not see the Lord.  In other words those who are without holiness, which is godliness or Christlikeness, will not inherit eternal life in Heaven.

Some people believe that if they do enough good it will gain them eternal life in Heaven.  The truth is we are only able to see the Lord in Heaven through Jesus Himself, not by our good deeds.  There is no way we could do enough good things to impress God in order to gain eternal life in Heaven.  However, Jesus did live a good and perfect life which qualified Him to be the ultimate sacrifice that pleased God.  And the only way that He was able to do so was because He was God in the flesh.  Jesus lived a holy and perfect life that was in complete obedience to God and He did it all for those who could not keep the law of God.

All who trust in the person and works of Jesus Christ are given the gift of the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit enables those who are in Christ to pursue holiness and possess a longing for the things of God.  A new yearning to live holy and perfectly is the result of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.  If you pursue peace and holiness it is because God gives you the ability to do so.  You cannot pursue peace and holiness outside a relationship with Jesus Christ.

Prayer

Ask the Lord to give you strength and courage as you strive to live holy and perfectly according to His Word.