Walk While You Wait | Brad Straarup

How many of you have loved Lost Week in the waiting?

Has this been helpful so far?

Praise God.

I know for so many of us, we're in waiting seasons, and a lot of the time when we're in waiting seasons, the question is, what is it that we need to do?

Well, I believe the scripture is gonna help us out.

It says this in John chapter 9, verse 1.

John 9:1

John chapter 9, verse 1, it says, as he went along, he, that's Jesus, saw a man blind from birth, and his disciples asked him, Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?

John 9:1

And Jesus said, Neither this man nor his parents have sinned.

But this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.

I want you to notice something is that when the disciples walk past this man, what they want to do is they want to debate.

Like, why is this man like this?

Like, what is wrong with this guy?

Did he sin?

Did his parents sin?

Why is he in this place?

But I need you to see something.

What Jesus sees is Jesus doesn't see a debate.

What Jesus sees is a display.

Then he says, No, no, no, this man didn't sin, his parents didn't sin.

The reason he's like this is because God is actually wanting to display something through him.

Some of you, that's all you needed for today is you've come into this place and you're saying, God, why am I in this place?

What is happening?

Let me just say, God's a finish in your story, and while everyone wants to pontificate, God is saying, No, no, no, no.

I'm trying to display something in them.

I'm trying to show something through them.

I know you might not see the other end of it right now, but I'm trying to do something.

In that place where everyone else sees a debate, he sees a display and he says this, as long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me.

Night is coming when no one can work.

And while I am in the world, I am the light of the world.

And after saying this, he spat on the ground and he made some mud with a saliva and he put it on the man's eyes.

Go! He told him, Wash in the pool of siloum, which means sent.

And I think this is one of the most powerful sentences in this passage.

It says this.

So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.

The man went and washed and came home seeing.

Today I want to talk from this title, Walk While You Wait.

Walk while you're waiting while it doesn't make sense.

I want you to walk.

When you're trying to figure out what's going on, I want you to walk.

When the doctor's report doesn't come back the way that you want it to come back, I want you to walk.

So what I need you to do is I need you to find three people, and in the spirit of Dory, I need you to just turn to someone and say, man, just keep walking.

Turn to someone, just say, just keep walking.

Come on, just keep walking.

Just keep walking.

God, we love you.

God, we thank you for what you're doing in this place.

God, I pray that you will come, that you will speak, that you will do what only you can do.

We love you.

We praise you in Jesus' name.

And everybody said, Come on, everybody said.

Amen and amen.

You can go ahead and grab your seats.

Grab your seats, grab your seats, grab your seats.

I don't know about y'all, but anyone in this room and you like waiting rooms?

Anyone in here and you like waiting rooms?

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

None of us, not a single person have I ever met that is like, you know what?

I just really like waiting rooms.

Like, there's nothing about waiting rooms that I like.

You know, those old magazines that they have from like 2017, the People's Magazine that no one ever reads.

You know, something random on the TV.

If you're in a hospital waiting room, you see a bunch of kids that are sick, and you're like, wait, I brought in my kids because they're sick, but now I'm conflicted because I'm wondering, are they gonna get more sick being in this room because everyone else has something worse than that?

Has anyone ever had that thought before?

Waiting rooms can be tough.

Time takes forever in a waiting room.

Like at home, five minutes feels like it goes like this.

In a waiting room, five minutes feels like the entire book of Leviticus.

You know what I mean?

You're just like, this isn't this is just long.

Like this isn't worth like in waiting rooms, you become an investigator.

Because you're like, I swear they came in off to me.

Why are they being seen before?

Like, what do they have that I don't like?

Who do I need to talk to?

Because they are definitely getting help before me.

There is nothing that I like about waiting rooms.

Doctor's rooms, the DMV, the airport, the airport.

How is it that a place that is designed to help you move so often can be the place of most delay?

Like we are here because we are trying to move.

But we're delayed.

A couple months back, Paige and I were traveling and our flight got delayed, and all of a sudden we're like, oh my gosh, like we're gonna be late to the place, we're gonna have to try and do a connection, we're gonna have to sprint.

We're like, this is awful.

And we had this entire long delay, and I remember being so frustrated because I need to move, but I'm causing, I need to stay, and in that moment I did something and and it taught me something.

I pulled up my laptop and I started checking emails and I started checking some texts and I started working, and what should have felt like hours felt like minutes.

Why?

Because I had turned my waiting room into a workroom.

And last week, what we talked about is we talked about what do you do when God has spoken, but you're unable to make that reality come to pass.

Anyone ever had that?

Where God has spoken something over your life, there's a promise that you're trying to claim, and for some reason, you're not able to do anything about that.

When that moment happens, what we talked about last week is we have to work our way.

Like when we're in that place and we're in the waiting room, what is the best thing that we can do?

The best thing that we can do is actually start working because if I'm gonna be waiting, I might as well be working.

I love the way that Isaiah says it.

Isaiah 40, verse 31, it says this.

Isaiah 40:31

Man, this verse just pumps me up.

It says, But those who wait, some verses say hope, some verses say trust.

Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up on wings like eagles, they shall run and not be wary, they will walk and not grow faint.

Man, that makes me want to go old school.

Bring a Hammond B3 organ up here and be like those who wait on the Lord.

And I think I love that verse, and I love to read that verse, and I love to speak that verse, and I love to preach that verse.

I just don't like to live that verse.

We don't like to wait, and sometimes you read it, those who wait on the Lord and you think it's kind of like this like those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength.

But when you actually read it, it's not passivity, it's not inactivity.

It says, those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength, they shall mount up on wings like eagles, they shall run and not grow wary, they will walk and not grow faint.

Waiting doesn't look like waiting, it looks like mounting up.

It looks like running, it looks like walking.

In this verse, waiting doesn't seem like waiting.

Waiting seems a whole lot like working.

It's movement, it's staying faithful even when you don't have clarity, it's obeying even when you don't have the resolution, it's preparing even when you don't have the answer, it's trusting even when God is silent.

Remaining anchored while anticipating God to move.

And what I want to do today is I want to talk about a different aspect of waiting because there are moments in our lives where God has spoken and we have the inability to change our situation.

That's what we talked about last week.

I'm not talking about those moments in our lives that we have an inability to change our situation.

What I want to talk about today is the times in your life that God has spoken and you have what you need to move, but you are in a waiting season not because God hasn't spoken, but you're in a waiting season because you are delaying it.

He's already told you what it is that you need to do.

The doctor has said the doctor will see you now, but we're not going in because we're afraid of what might happen if we walk into that room.

Like if I actually take up God on the things that He has said, what will actually happen?

So we're waiting, not because God hasn't spoken, but He has.

You see, what we need to know is that when it comes to waiting, there's a massive difference between waiting and procrastination.

There's a massive difference between waiting and passivity.

And I think Jesus did it best.

Man, Jesus did it better than anyone else.

You need to know this: that Jesus had the perfect amount that he would wait on God, but he also knew when he needed to move.

He knew when he needed to wait, and he knew when he needed to walk.

Like, I'm amazed at watching everything that Jesus did in his three years of ministry.

Like, we're eight months old as a church, and it already blows my mind just seeing everything that God has done.

What we're walking into here at Spurrow Church.

Let me just say this: it is a miracle.

We're coming up on one year, but in three years, Jesus set the world on fire.

Like it's unbelievable just getting to see everything that he did, and I think so much of it is he knew when to wait, but he also knew when he needed to move.

John 9, verse 5, he makes a statement.

John 9:5

He says this he says, While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.

What he's saying is, I have to do what God has called me to do in the window that God has given me to do it.

And I think for some of you, that's exactly what you need to know.

Sometimes what we forget is the Bible says that life is like a vapor.

Do you know how long a vapor is?

And sometimes our entire goal in life is I just need to work real hard that I can retire, that what I can do is just sit on the sand by the beach and collect seashells.

But your life is this long.

And then we stand before God and give an account.

We have to do the thing that God has called us to do in the lifetime that God has called us to do it.

I think David, it's said of him.

Acts 13, 36, it says this that he served the purpose of God in his own generation.

I don't know about y'all, but I want that to be said of me that Brad served God in his generation.

Come on, doesn't anyone want that?

That you did the thing that God told you to do.

Man, we see Jesus walk this out, we see David walk this out.

And there's almost this concept that we have to understand that almost as God is speaking, the second God starts speaking to us, whether it's through the Word, whether it's through the Holy Spirit, that will line up with the Word, when God starts speaking, as He starts speaking, my feet are already moving.

Like He's not even done speaking yet.

But we so love obeying God, we're so addicted to obeying God that the second He speaks, we're already walking.

You see, because what I've learned in my life is this delayed obedience is disobedience.

Delayed obedience is disobedience.

My son's saying, Yo, he is currently working on my sanctification.

I'm trying real hard.

Yesterday he comes up to me and he's had breakfast.

He had a big breakfast.

My my son can eat.

If there's one thing he can do, he can eat.

We talked about pre-eating, he pre-pre-eats.

Okay, we talked about that last week, okay?

He he can eat, and he came up to me yesterday.

He's like, Dad, I want a cracker.

Okay, if you know my son, you know he loves crackers.

And I said, I said, son, I was like, you just had a big breakfast.

I was like, you're you're gonna need a wait.

And he said, huh?

And I and I was like, I was like, oh, I was like, hey buddy, I go a bit louder.

Hey buddy, you're you're gonna need a weight.

He said in the kitchen, he goes, huh?

And I'm like, you can't eat now.

You you you you need a weight.

And he goes, huh?

And then I realized it wasn't that he wasn't hearing me.

Oh no, he heard me, but he was delaying because in delaying, he was hoping that I would change my mind.

And sometimes, y'all, that's what we do with God.

God tells us to do something, we're like, huh?

God's like, I need you to move.

We're like, huh?

And we're delaying, hoping that by our delaying that somehow God is gonna change my mind.

Let me just tell you something.

God doesn't change his mind.

If it's in this word, it's in this word, and it's not changing.

Some of us are in relationships, and you know you need to not be in that relationship.

Everyone told you he doesn't love Jesus, he's not leading you well, you shouldn't be in it.

Your parents have told you not to be in it, your friends have not told you to be in it, but you're just waiting.

Because you're hoping that by delaying, that something's gonna change.

Y'all, there are some things that we don't need to wait on, and what we need to do is not replace obedience with waiting.

When God tells us to do it, what we need to do, everything inside of us is we need to do it.

So when God says we need to share our faith, you need to tell your friend about me, you need to invite them to church.

What you need to do is you need to evangelize, you need to give, you need to serve, you need to start a group, you need to join a group, you need to be on mission, you need to forgive that person, you need to love your neighbor, you need to go over there, you need to say sorry.

Sometimes we need to stop wondering, pontificating, huh?

And just do the thing that God has called us to do.

James 1, verse 22, it says us do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourself.

James 1:22

Do what it says.

We are not changed by the word that we hear, we are changed by the word that we do.

We are changed by the word that we do.

We think we're waiting, but what we're actually doing is we're procrastinating.

We think we're waiting, but what we're actually doing is we're being passive.

We think we're waiting, but what we're actually doing is disobeying.

Delayed obedience is disobedience.

So we have this unusual situation that we're reading about this man who is born blind.

And the disciples say, Why is he like this?

Did he do something?

Did his parents do something?

And Jesus says, No, that's not what happened.

He is like this because the glory of God is going to be displayed.

And he says, While I'm in the world, I am the light of the world.

And then in verse 6, he does something that says this.

After saying this, he spat on the ground.

Now, y'all, that's wild.

Because the Bible says he's blind, he's not deaf.

So he's sitting there and he hears that.

And he's like, Wait, are they mocking me?

Like, what is happening in this moment?

And then all of a sudden, he feels the substance on his eyes.

He doesn't even know who Jesus is.

He has the substance on his eyes.

And what y'all are thinking?

You're like, that's not disgusting because it's Jesus' spit.

It's like sanctified spit, it's like holy spit.

Y'all, it's still spit.

Like it's still spit.

On his eyes, so uncomfortable.

And then Jesus says to him, verse 7, go, he said, wash in the pool of Siloam, which means sent.

But here's what I love about this man.

He went and washed.

He went and washed.

What are you waiting on?

What's that thing that you're waiting on?

I want you to think about that thing and I want you to let it come to the surface.

What is the thing that you're waiting on?

For some people, it's something general.

Man, I'm just waiting for joy to come back.

Like I'm just waiting for my happiness to return.

That's what I'm waiting for.

Some people, it's more specific.

I'm waiting for my marriage to be restored.

Like I'm waiting on God to do something.

I'm waiting for something in my job to change.

Like God, I'm waiting for you to actually do something.

Are you waiting on God to speak on that situation?

Because if that's what you're doing, that's wise.

We see it in the Bible, right?

Where God is saying to Abraham, wait.

And what happens is Ishmael comes when he was supposed to wait for Isaac.

Like if you're waiting on God to speak, I think that's wise.

But sometimes it's not that we're waiting on God to speak, it's that he's already spoken.

We just don't want to do the thing that he called us to do.

Right?

It happens to me all the time.

I just don't want to do the thing that he told me to do.

I want you to picture this guy.

What happens is he's in this moment.

He has mud on his eyes.

So Jesus says to him, with mud on his eyes, he says, Okay, here's what I want you to do.

I want you to go wash.

I want you to wint and I want you to wash.

The man says, Okay.

So the man went and the man washes.

You see, nothing so often in my life, God tells me to do things, and I don't win and wash.

I think a lot of times in my life I don't win and wash, I wait and wail.

Anyone?

Oh God! Why am I here?

What am I supposed to do?

Sometimes I don't win and wail.

Sometimes what I do instead is I wait and wonder.

God, why am I in this place?

God, why is this happening?

God, when are you gonna do something?

Why am I still here?

And you're like, I don't know what I'm gonna do.

I'm gonna wait it out.

Oh Jesus, I'm gonna wait on you.

Just gonna wait it out.

So thank you, Jesus.

I'm just gonna just gonna wait on you.

And I sometimes wonder if God's looking at us and we're just like, I'm just gonna wait on you to restore that thing.

I'm just gonna wait on you.

And I wonder if sometimes God looks at us and he's like, what do you mean?

He's like, you're waiting on me.

I'm waiting on you.

You're waiting on me, I'm waiting on you.

You're like, nope, no, I got it.

I'll just be here until the mud gets cleared out of my eyes, and then I'll go and wash.

You know what?

Instead of going to wash, I'm just gonna wait for the miracle to happen.

And once I can see my way there, I'll walk my way there.

You see, because it's a lot easier for me to go all the way to the south of the city to wash in the pool of Siloam when I can see my way there.

So even though you've told me to go there, what I'm gonna do instead is I'm just gonna wait, because in waiting, I'm gonna somehow, some at point, some point C, and then I'm gonna walk my way.

Or we're waiting when God told us to go.

So instead of actually just following the thing that God told us to do, we're in that place.

Saying, God, I want you to change, God, I want you to say something, but He wants what He wants you to do is He wants you to move.

You have to know that when it comes to the Bible, I think for a lot of us, we know the things that we need to do, but we're not actually doing it.

And most of the time, our problem isn't in knowing, our problem is in application.

Our problem isn't that we're doing the thing.

And I feel like this in my own life.

Sometimes we are educated, sometimes I am educated beyond the level of my obedience.

I'm educated beyond the level of my obedience.

And my prayer is that when Jesus comes back, he doesn't come back to an intellectual church.

A church that is like, no, I understand the Great Commission.

No, I understand forgiveness.

No, no, no, I understand the concept.

My prayer is that he doesn't come back to an intellectual church, my prayers that he comes back to an obedient one.

One that's actually making disciples, one that is actually going after the communities that God has called us to go after.

Waiting won't change our situation so often, only washing will.

You see, he touched his eyes and the healing started, but the healing wasn't going to take place until he actually got to the place that God told him to go.

We're struggling with unforgiveness, but Romans 12, verse 18 says this as much as it depends on you, live at peace with all men.

Romans 12:18

So we're wanting that unforgiveness, that bitterness to leave, but Jesus is saying, I've already given you what you needed to do, you just need to do it.

What you need to do is you need to wash instead of wait.

Can you imagine the people in the Bible?

There's some people that if they just waited, like what would have happened in that moment?

You know?

Noah blows the ark and the rain's coming, and he's like, Man, there's a lot of animals.

He's like, God, I'm gonna chill, I'm gonna chill.

I'm gonna wait it, wait this one out.

Wait this one out.

Just waiting for you to move.

David, Goliath is there, and he's like, someone should defeat this guy.

I'ma wait.

Wait it out.

Moses at the Red Sea.

Pharaoh is coming.

The Red Sea has blocked you.

What are we gonna do?

Pray.

Wait.

It's gonna wait on God.

And God is like, lift up your stuff, cross the river.

Sometimes we're waiting.

What God wants us to do is He wants us to obey.

We can't replace obeying with waiting.

So here's what I want to do.

I want to talk real quickly about why we wait, and then I want to help you on how to move while we wait.

Why we wait, and then I want to help you with how we're supposed to move while we wait.

Why we wait, there's a couple of things that we wait on.

The first thing that we wait on is this uncertainty.

Anyone?

We wait on certainty.

The Bible says this in Ecclesiastes 11, verse 4.

Ecclesiastes 11:4

Whoever watches the wind will not plant, and whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.

What does that mean?

It means that if you're waiting on the perfect conditions in order for you to do the thing that God has called you to do, you're never gonna do it.

If you're waiting for everything to line up, you're never gonna do it.

If you're waiting to be ready, you're never gonna take steps of obedience.

If I'm waiting until I'm ready to forgive, then it's all gonna happen.

No, no, no.

Some things you just do it.

People came to us and they were like, How did you guys know that you were ready to move?

Like, how did you know that you needed to move to Phoenix?

And I was like, oh my gosh, easiest thing in the world.

Like I prayed about it, and then I walked outside and I met my UPS driver, and his name was Phoenix.

And then I went inside, I turned on the weather channel, Phoenix, 112 degrees, and I was like, man, the suffering is even calling me.

It's like this is this is amazing.

Walked outside again, no jokes.

I saw a bird flying Arizona flag.

Bird had an Arizona flag, and I was like, okay, that's that's how I know this must be no what?

Yes, God spoke.

Yes, there were dreams, yes, there were this, but most of the time when we're going, we're kind of certain.

We're like kind of sure.

We're like, it's 90-10, it's not 90 ten, it's not 75, 25.

Most of the time it's 5149.

I'm just more sure that he's telling me to move than he's telling me to stay.

And if that's the case, I'm gonna move.

We wait on certainty.

Certainty is never gonna come.

Gideon, God's talking to Gideon, hey, get in, your army's too big.

I need you to come back, I need you to bring it down.

Do you think he was certain?

No, we don't do things certain, we do things scared.

That's how we do it.

We do things with faith coming here.

I was not certain, I was freaked out.

I was scared.

We didn't know a soul in Phoenix.

Like, let's sell everything.

This is a great idea.

Let's move with our two-week gold.

We'll figure this out.

You don't do things certain, you do things scared.

I know that Gideon would have been afraid.

I know that Joshua would have felt some fear when he was walking around the walls of Jericho.

None of this makes sense.

I know that Peter felt fear when he was walking on the water.

We do not do things certain.

So if you wait on certainty, you're never gonna move.

Now, I'm not talking about throwing caution to the wind.

The Bible talks about this, Luke 14 28.

It says you're not gonna build a tower unless you have what you need in order to complete it.

So I'm not saying just throw all wisdom out, but I am saying that when God is speaking, you're not gonna always have all the details, and you're gonna need to.

Move this man, he did not have all the details.

He didn't know the path.

He's probably never even walked there before.

And now he's going and he's like, people are gonna mock me.

I feel so stupid.

I don't know who this person is.

I don't know.

Am I really doing this right?

Is this really gonna happen?

Am I gonna get all the way there?

And then I'm not gonna have what I don't think he had certainty, I think he had faith.

We wait on certain.

Another thing that we wait on is we wait on clarity.

God, if you write it in the clouds, I'm in.

Like, I know it's in your Bible.

But it would be really nice if it was in the Bible and on the clouds.

Right?

Y'all have done it.

I've prayed it.

Like, okay, God, and I know I know.

And you break up with her.

So here's what I'm gonna do.

If I drive to work and all the lights are green, then I'll know.

Oh yeah, y'all are laughing because you've done it.

And then you drive, what happens?

All the lights are green.

You're like, got it.

Then you're like, oh Jesus.

Okay, God, I tell you what, like, let's try one more time.

Strive one more time for all the lights are green, then I'll know that it was for sure you.

And then we go, all the lights are red.

And we're like, God, make up your mind.

We wait on clarity.

Makes me think of Abraham.

Genesis 12, verse 1.

Genesis 12:1

The Lord said to Abraham, Go from your country, your people, and your father's household, and go to the land that I will show you.

Not the land that I have shown you, the land that I will show you.

God's formula is often this go and I will show.

Like we didn't have all the clarity, everything that we needed when we came to Phoenix.

All we knew is that God had spoken, kind of.

We think it, okay, there's dreams, there's but are we sure?

No, you're just kind of sort of more sure than you're not.

But when we went, we're like, God, I just pray that as we go, you will show.

I'm sure this man didn't know the exact path that he needed to take, but as he went, God reveals.

We wait on clarity.

He didn't have Google Maps, he didn't have ways.

Psalm 119, 105, your word is a lamp unto my feet, it is a light unto my path.

It is a lamp, it is not a floodlight.

And I think sometimes we're waiting on the floodlight where God's like, no, I'm just gonna give you your next step.

What is your next step?

What is the thing you need to trust God to do?

Maybe it's to give your life to Christ because you haven't done that.

Maybe the thing you need to do is get baptized, maybe the thing you need to do is join a group, maybe the thing you need to do is lead a group, maybe you need to tell someone about your faith.

Maybe you need to forgive someone, maybe that's the thing that God is calling you to do in this moment.

Maybe it's to join the dream team.

Maybe it's to start trusting him with your finances, maybe it's start to praying, maybe start to read your Bible.

What next step is God calling you to take?

We wait on certainty, we wait on clarity.

Last thing we wait on is we wait on congruence.

Like, what are that?

Guys, I needed to see.

Calm down, calm down.

Certainty, clarity, and congruence.

Here's what congruence is.

It's sometimes we look at things and we're like, I need to make sure that my feelings and the situation and people's approval and all of those things line up.

And when all of those things line up, then I'm gonna do what God called me.

When my feelings and my finances and my friends and the temperature and the economy, then I'm gonna do the thing that God called me to do.

Anyone ever had that?

You're like, man, when I feel peace, I'll move.

Like that, that's what I'm saying.

The only challenge with that is you get people like Paul, Acts 20, verse 22, and he says this.

Acts 20:22

And now, compelled by the Spirit, what does that mean?

Bound, tied, restrictured, pulled, led, directed.

There's people that will often say, you know what?

God doesn't speak outside of his word.

And let me just say this: God definitely speaks in his word, but the Holy Spirit can still lead you to do something, to go have a specific conversation with someone.

It will never contradict his word, but the Holy Spirit still leads, he still guides, he still helps, he's still a comforter.

So he says to Paul, go to the land.

Paul says that's all I know is that I am compelled by the Spirit.

I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there.

In other words, he is not certain.

He doesn't have clarity.

He says, All I know is this that in every city, the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me.

How's that for congruence?

He's like, I'm not certain about a lot of things.

All I'm certain of is it's gonna be hard.

Jesus says that.

In this life you will have trouble.

But take heart, I've come overcome the world.

But like Brad, be more positive.

Absolutely, I am positive that in this life you will have trouble.

So sure of it.

But he says this, Acts 20, verse 24.

Acts 20:24

However, I consider my life worth nothing to me.

My only aim is to finish the race and complete the task that the Lord has given me, the task of testifying the good news of God's grace.

What we're gonna do more than anything is he's saying, I know that I'm afraid, but I'm just gonna obey and do the task that God has called me to do.

What is the thing that God is telling you to do?

And today, can you take a step?

We wait on certainty, we wait on clarity, we wait on congruence.

It says that the man went and washed and came home singing.

So here's what I want you to do.

First thing I want you to do, I want you to keep walking.

How do we walk while we wait?

Here's what I want you to do.

First thing, I want you to keep walking.

Man, this man is going, and I'm pretty sure that at some point he's like, Where am I?

And if you all are in a place where you're walking and it feels like you're going nowhere, you're doing the things that God has called you to do, but for some reason it feels like the answer isn't coming.

Here's my encouragement to you keep walking.

Because God's time is not our time.

His ways are not our ways.

It says a Psalm 90, verse 2, before the mountains were born, or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting, you are God.

Psalms 90:2

Literally, from everlasting to everlasting.

2 Peter 3, verse 8.

2 Peter 3:8

But do not forget this one thing, dear friends, that with the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day.

I heard a story about a man that was talking to God, and he said to God, he was like, Okay, God, what is like a million years to you?

Like, what what what is what is a million years to you?

And God was like, Man, it's like a second.

He's like, Oh, that's awesome.

He's like, God, what is like a million dollars to you?

God was like a penny.

He's like, Oh, that's so crazy.

That's amazing.

He's like, hey, God, can I have a penny?

And God was like, Yeah, and in a second.

Don't laugh at that, that's dumb.

God's ways are not our ways.

J.R., I need you to come up here.

I need you to come up here.

Okay, you need to understand this.

God's ways not our ways.

His time is not our time.

He's on a different timeline than we are.

I want to show you a picture of on a little in the waiting logo.

That is a timeline, okay?

J.R., let me just tell you something, brother.

When you were born, a timeline started.

Do you agree?

Yes.

And a lot of us, when we start on this timeline, we move chronologically on this timeline, which means you were born at some point, and then you started getting older.

Are we agreeing?

And you can never move back on that timeline.

Can you move back?

No.

Praise God.

Make sure you weren't crazy.

Okay, we can only move one way.

Okay?

Some people, what happens is they're getting older chronologically, but they're staying in the same place spiritually and emotionally.

Okay?

And what happens is we're getting older.

And sometimes we're praying, and what we say is, God, I need you to do something in my life.

And what God does is God answers, but God doesn't answer here, He's outside of time.

He can move back, He can move forward.

He says this before the world was, I am.

I am what?

I am.

Not I was, not I will be, I am.

He's outside of time because he created time.

When you create something, you're not in the creation, you're outside of the creation.

He created time, he's outside of time.

So what that means is you can pray about something, and God can drop the miracle at Siloam.

And we're waiting and we're saying, God, I need you to do something.

And he says, I've already answered here.

But what you have to do is you just have to keep walking.

And what happens is you'll walk into the provision that I had.

You just need to get to Siloam.

You need to get to the place of obedience.

Give Jared our hand.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.

We have to keep walking.

His formula is go and I will show Galatians 6 verse 9.

Galatians 6:9

Let us not become wary in doing good, for in the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

Man, if I don't quit, I win.

If I wake up this morning, I win.

If I just keep going, I win.

Even if it doesn't look like it's supposed to look like.

If I just keep persevering, we win.

First thing I want you to do is I want you to keep walking.

The second thing I want you to do is I want you to keep believing.

Keep believing.

Y'all, believing is hard.

It is really easy to go to the gym for the first day.

It is really hard to go back.

It is really hard to start something.

It's really easy to start something.

It is really hard to sustain something.

I'm famous for this.

I love hobbies.

Like people are like, what are your hobbies?

I'm like, my hobby is hobbies.

Anyone else?

I just like hobbies.

Like, I mean, I remember a couple years back.

My latest hobby was grass.

Oh my gosh, I love grass.

Like, I can tell you so much about grass.

It's so like I I spent months, y'all.

I was deep in the rabbit hole.

Like, just tell me about grass.

Like, I love because I love hobbies.

I was like, I'm gonna have the greenest grass, I'm gonna have the most cut grass, and then God sent me to Arizona.

So now my hobby isn't grass, it's sand.

I'm joking, it's not even more sand.

But I love hobbies, and I'm really good at starting, and what I'm found is that it's hard for me to sustain them.

It's easy to start eating well, it's hard to sustain it.

It's easy to start getting out of debt, it's hard to sustain it.

Today is Pentecost Sunday, and what Pentecost is, it's 50 days after Passover when the Holy Spirit came after Jesus died.

The Holy Spirit came and he descended upon people.

And I think it's really unique because what happens is Jesus rose from the dead and he spent 40 days revealing himself to people.

He revealed himself to 500 people.

And then he said this when he was ascending, he said, wait for the gift of the Holy Spirit which is coming.

And they had to wait 10 days.

They didn't know how many days, they just had to wait.

And what was unique is we don't know how many people when Jesus was going up into the clouds, we don't know how many people were there.

I just think it's so fascinating that the Savior of the world revealed himself to 500 people, but only 120 were in the upper room when Pentecost came.

And I don't know how you see the risen king of the Savior of the world, but it just made me think, man, it is really hard to keep believing when you're waiting.

Like that's a wrestle.

My prayer is this is that you'll keep walking.

And my prayer is that you will keep believing.

I'm sure this man, as he was walking, maybe he hit his head, maybe he doesn't know where to go.

And he's like, Man, this is tough.

But I'm gonna keep believing what that man said.

That if I just make it to the pool of Silo, I'm just gonna believe what it was that that man said.

I'm gonna keep walking.

I think for some of you in this room, my prayer is that you will fight to keep believing what his word has said, that you will keep rehearsing what he has said.

You're like, this is hard.

Yeah, but Psalm 34, 18 says that my God is close to the brokenhearted.

This is hard, yeah.

But Isaiah 40, 31 says that those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.

This is hard.

Yeah, I know, but 2 Corinthians 12, verse 9 says that his grace is sufficient for us and his power is made perfect in our weakness.

2 Corinthians 12:9

This is hard, yeah.

But 2 Timothy 1, verse 7 says that God has not given me a spirit of fear, but of love, power, and a sound mind.

2 Timothy 1:7

You see, so often in our life we have all these fears that are facing us, and the challenges so often we feed our fears instead of feeding our faith.

We rehearse the lies of the enemy instead of rehearsing the word of God.

I need you to keep walking, but I also need you to keep believing.

God often has the pro a promise, but we need to go through the process to get it.

And the final thing I need you to do is I just want you to keep worshiping.

Keep worshiping, worship while you wait.

Believe while you wait, walk while you wait, but walk do something.

This man eventually washes his eyes at the pool of Siloam and says that he sees and he goes back, and people don't even recognize him because they've never seen him in this way.

And the religious leaders start questioning him, and he's like, This man, Jesus, did this.

So they start getting angry at him, and eventually they kick him out of the synagogue because Jesus healed on the Sabbath.

Okay, Jesus always healed on the Sabbath.

Why?

Like, why not a Tuesday?

And he was like, because that wouldn't make him mad.

We're gonna do it on the Sabbath.

He heals this guy on the Sabbath, and eventually Jesus finds him when he's kicked out and says this.

Jesus heard that they had thrown him out.

I just need you to know that some people feel like you've been thrown out.

When others have rejected you, I just need you to know that Jesus accepts you.

And when he found him, he said, Do you believe in the Son of Man?

Who is he, sir?

The man asked, Tell me that I may believe in him.

And Jesus says, You have now seen him.

In fact, he is the one speaking to you.

And the man said, Lord, I believed, and he worshiped him.

He worshiped him.

Y'all, I think it is so beautiful that this man, at the moment that he receives his miracle, he worships Jesus.

But I think so often in my life, it is easy for me to worship when I receive the thing that God has promised.

It is really hard to worship on the way.

And my question for you today is this while you're walking, will you worship?

Will you worship on the way?

Because if I've learned something about worship, is worship gives me the strength I need to take another step.

Here's why we worship.

Worship reminds us of who God is when life makes us forget.

Worship keeps our focus on God instead of the delay.

Worship is trust expressed before the answer shows up.

Worship keeps our heart soft when we're tempted to become cynical.

Worship says, God, even if nothing changes, you are still worthy.

And here's what I've seen most of my life when I am, when I was deported, when we were struggling with infertility, is that worship turns my waiting room into a meeting place.

A meeting place with God.

All he's saying is, Will you worship me in that thing?

Because it's amazing the breakthroughs that happen as people worship.

I'm not saying it's always going to be the case, but Paul and Silas were in prison and they started worshiping.

And while they were worshiping, the prison gates flew open.

It's while they were worshiping David, while he was running, while he was waiting, he wrote songs to God, Jehosaphat.

As they were going into war, he sent worshipers ahead.

Second Chronicles 20, 22 says this they began to sing and praise.

And the Lord sent ambushes against the men of Amun and Moab and Mount Seir, where they were invading Judah, and they were defeated.

What I know is that worship doesn't remove the waiting.

Sometimes it can remove the weight of the waiting, but all of the time it recenters ourselves on a God who is sovereign, a God that loves us, a God that sees our address.

When everyone else has rejected, he still sees us.

He knows that we're walking.

And what he's saying is, I just need you to keep doing the thing that I've asked you to do.

I need you to walk while you wait.

Can we do that this week?

Lord God, I want to pray for every single person that's here.

Lord, I don't know the things that they're struggling with.

God, I know that there's sometimes we have situations in our life that we can't change.

And when that's the case, God, I pray that you'll give us the permission, the ability, Lord, to work our way.

But God, there's sometimes there are things, God, that you have told us to do.

God, you have told us to go to that place.

You have told us what we need to do, whether someone we need to forgive, someone that we need to love, something that we need to do, someone that we need to tell, someone that we need to call.

God, you've told us the things that we need to do.

God, I just pray that you give us the strength to do it.

That we will walk, that we will remind ourselves of your promises, God, and that we will worship in the middle of it.

While you continue praying, there's some people here today, and maybe you have never started a relationship with Jesus.

What you need to understand is this the Bible says that all of us have made mistakes.

You have, I have, and God can't be in relationship with anyone that has made a mistake.

But God loves you so much that he sent his son Jesus to come and live the life that we could not live, and he died on a cross for our sins.

And the Bible says all we have to do is believe in our heart that God raised him from the dead and declare with our mouth that he is Lord and we will be saved.

What that means is you don't just say a prayer.

What you say is, God, whatever you say, I'm gonna do it.

And if you do it, the Bible says that you will be saved.

I need you to know today, God is not mad at you, God is madly in love with you, that he sent his son.

And if you're here today, no one's looking around and you're like, Brad, I'm going all in.

Like I want to make Jesus Lord of my life.

I want you to pray this prayer.

Just say, Dear Jesus, I believe that you're the Son of God and the Savior of the world.

I believe you came to this earth.

You died on a cross and you were raised that I may have life.

And right now I make you my Lord.

I make you my savior in Jesus' name.

In Jesus' name.

With every head bowed, if you're here and you're saying, I'm going all in with Jesus today, I'm making him Lord of my life on the count of three.

I just want you to wave at me and say, Brad, that's me.

Here we go.

One, two, three.

If that's you, if you're making that decision, lift up your hands.

That's awesome.

I love that.

I love that.

I love that.

Hey Church, can you do me a favor?

Come on, can you put your hands together?

Come on, for everyone who just said that.

Well for a time.

Hey, we love you so much.

And if you are watching and you just said yes to Jesus, congratulations, because this is the best decision you could ever make.

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Well, hey, we love you, and we will see you next week because remember, with God, there is more.