- Angelo Palma
Sitting in God's Waiting Room
“Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey. And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying…These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication” (Acts 1:12-14) In Acts 1, we read of 120 believers in our Lord Jesus Christ together in an upper room in Jerusalem. Jesus has ascended to heaven. He had instructed them to fulfill the Great Commission, to make disciples of all the nations. But for right now, He had commanded them to wait – to wait for Him to first send the Holy Spirit. For ten days, their upper room became God’s waiting room for them. What do you do when you are sitting in God’s waiting room?
Are you quick to get impatient, frustrated, angry or bitter?
Do you tend to check out spiritually and become self-indulgent?
Does your time of waiting become nothing more than a waste of time? As we look at the apostles and believers in Acts 1, we learn some powerful practices for how to best utilize our time in waiting: 1. Keep trusting and obeying (v.12-13) – Wait expectantly and obediently! 2. Keep gathering and praying (v.13-14, 24) – Wait prayerfully! 3. Keep reading and wielding (the sword of the Spirit) (v.15-22) – Wait with your mind fixed on the Word! 4. Keep listening and yielding (v.23-26) – Wait submissively! 5. Keep assessing and preparing (v.21-26) – Wait actively and deliberately! When Jesus came to this earth, He spent much time waiting. He waited thirty years to begin His public ministry. He waited another three years before He would do what He especially came to do: to redeem humanity, die on the cross for our sins, and rise again from the dead in victory. But in all of His waiting, Jesus always perfectly did the will of the Father. He never wasted a moment in “the waiting room”. It can be easy to treat your times of waiting as a ‘time-out’. Instead, stay in the game that the Lord has for you! Instead of waiting passively, remember that God calls you to wait actively, being deliberate and diligent to do what you can do now so that you are all the more ready and prepared when God gives the green light and the wait is over. Ask the Lord to reveal to you if you are in a waiting season and what steps you may need to take at this time. May you be faithful and proactive, by His grace, to take each step accordingly while being expectant for what God will do.
Your brother in Christ, Angelo
"ACTS IN ACTION" CHALLENGE POINT:
So, my brothers and sisters, take some time today to ASSESS YOURSELF: If your “wait” ended tomorrow, are you ready? Is something lacking or out of order?
Is there a need for growth in a certain area first? And PREPARE: What would the Lord have you be doing now?