Wait: Promise in Process

Wait: Promise in Process

by Chaplain R. Lewis

     Wait is the hardest answer to prayer.  Being steadfast to stand fast, waiting for God to show what He is doing is not exactly in keeping with the quick fix society we live in.  Many times God has to herd us into a waiting pen, maybe through persecution, indecisiveness on the part of others, or waiting for that door to walk through found.  We grudgingly admit we are not in control of our situation.  The vision of our purpose has hit a wall, our nose is to it, and we are a bit blooded.  Our spirit is confused and struggling.  In our heart we have a sense of mission.  But the evidence around us is not promoting the picture we have painted for ourselves as far as fulfilment is concerned.  Often in these situations we materially lack for nothing.  We are fed, clothed, have shelter and even some of our wants are being fulfilled.  Yet, the wall is still there.  At these times after God has gotten my attention, I feel like a spoiled anxious child, but that doesn't ease me into contentment and  resolution.  I am still in unrest.  The dilemma remains and I keep scrambling to get over the wall at any encouragement. 

     I recall during a time like this coming upon Psalm 105.  The caption in my Bible read, "Remember, God keeps His promises."  I remember thinking, "Well, maybe He does, but what if I did not understand what his promise for me was?  What if this sense of mission is just an ego thing perpetuated by my own desire to be in control?"  I read further.  It told of Josephs' struggle in his captivity and his rise.  "The Word of the Lord tested Him."   I found myself asking, "Do you really believe this stuff?" Did I believe when none of my expectations were being fulfilled? 

     My expectations.  I listed in my mind just what my expectations were as I thought about Joseph.  Joseph had seen others bow before him  He made the mistake of telling others and was mocked and scorned.  But in his heart he knew what God had told him.  Not the specifics, but the knowing, a feeling of his destiny, his calling.  He must have been confused when the next few years brought him from a place of belonging to slavery.  He experienced a brief rise to prominence, then suffered under false accusations leading to imprisonment.  I wonder if he ever asked, "God could I have been that wrong?" 

     Yet the Word of God tested him.  He became a servant of God, not an aimless man of faith spewing out religious tenants, because Joseph allowed the scalpul of God in his life.  There is a time of waiting and in the waiting a paradox of activity.  He engaged those around him, like the cupbearer, in looking for God to act on his promise.  In the waiting there is a doing that prepares us for the coming out of our personal bondage.  We realize the bondage was all part of the exercising of our faith, making us trust God in ways freedom can't.  A broken and contrite heart can only come from seeing your reflection in the light of Gods mirror. 

      In my search I saw the early Joseph, the prideful self seeking pious Joseph,, that tended to step on the hearts of others in the name of God.  I saw the awareness of calling, but also the presumption of status at the end of the mission.  Gods mission could only be fulfilled in a purified vessel well aware of the true source of power.  If Joseph had not been forced to wait for purification, he may have ultimately killed his brothers in a fit of piety.  God tempered Joseph's high mission in life, by creating in him a humble and contrite heart.  That is what kept him pure, focused and strong when he did get his place of leadership in fulfillment of his vision. 

      How does this apply to inmates?  Many inmates think that upon their conversion they are to be immediately delivered from every habit and promoted to position of leadership.  God can and does give us a vision at times, but it's a vision that he often only gives us in pieces as to it's application.  It's important to teach them sanctification is a lifetime process.  He has to lay foundations and adds to our spiritual conversations with him with each encounter we have in applying our faith to our circumstances.  Just like a lot of those we minister to in prisons, we know the scripture and can quote it from front to back.  But knowing how to quote scripture is a far cry from applying it daily to our lives.  Teaching them that sanctification is a process will keep fewer of them from tossing their Bibles in the trash can when the instant fix doesn't come quick enough for them.  It's a walk with God, not a skydive.