From the Pulpit ................................................................Pages

Are you a patient person or are you impatient? I was always an impatient person when I was younger and before I became a Christian. Sometimes, even today, I have to stop myself and remember that God is in control of my life and the things that happen to me. I also have to remember that God's timing is absolutely perfect, whether what I'm waiting for comes today, or a few years down the road. Now, I know it can be hard to wait sometimes and show patience in life, whether with another person or with waiting on something that is important to you. Although, when you finally recieve what you were asking for, it is so worth the wait.

I know this first hand. As I have said before, I asked God for a godly wife back when I became a Christian in 2004. I thought to myself, 'Well, maybe in a year or two, God will bring her to me.' Not quite, I waited 13 years for my wife Donna; yes that's right: 13 years. You see, I believe that because patience was not my thing, God decided to teach me some patience. Now, I'm not saying everyone will have to wait 13 years for anything; what I am saying is that, when God brings whatever you are praying for, He will bring it in His own perfect timing. It also may not be who you're praying will be your spouse, or the house you want, or even the car or job you want; but know this: when God brings it for you, it will be better than you could ever have imagined.

When I think of waiting patiently for something to happen, I think of Christian Football player, Kurt Warner. This is a short story of what he had to do to make it to the NFL.

Kurt Warner always had to wait patiently for his turn, even when he was in college. He didn't make it as a starting quarterback at Northern Iowa until his senior season. When he was given the opportunity to play, he was amazing. After Kurt went undrafted, he decided to try out for the Green Bay Packers, but was cut not long after. So he then returned home to Iowa and got a job stocking shelves at the local grocery store for $5.50 an hour.

After some time had passed, Kurt knew he could still play the game and had a lot of football left in him. The competitiveness that was in him was more fun than putting maple syrup on the shelves. Kurt decided to try his hand at the Arena Football League, where he had to prove himself all over again. After trying out, he won the starting quarterback job with the Iowa Barnstormers. He then

From the Pulpit...Are you Patient? led the team to two championship games. Although Kurt was doing well, he still wanted a crack at the NFL. His opportunity came on a tryout with the Chicago Bears. But that didn't Owner/Publisher: Rob Wood work out, as he was bitten by a spider while he was on his honeymoon. Now his dream seemed like it would never take off, maybe even over. Kurt now was 27 years of age and hadn't played one game in the NFL. Then the St. Louis Rams decided to take a chance on him and opened up their check book and gave him a modest contract for the 1998 season. But he had to play in the NFL Europe league first; he played for the Amsterdam Admirals. Kurt excelled there; he lead the league in passing yards and touchdowns. Later in 1998, he was asked to play for the St. Louis Rams. He made the team, but as a third string quarterback. He would have to wait one more year for the opportunity of a lifetime.

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Following an ACL injury to Trent Green, the Rams starting quarterback, Kurt Warner finally had a shot to be the number one quarterback. All of his preparation, perseverance, and some patience with a lot of grit had brought Kurt to his very moment he was praying for. Kurt took off and the team thrived. Kurt had become the MVP of the NFL in his very first season as a starting quarterback. He broke records and he finished the season as Super Bowl MVP as he led the St. Louis Rams to a Super Bowl Championship in stunning fashion.

That was only the beginning for Kurt Warner. He would win another MVP in 2001, as he once again led the Rams to another Super Bowl, but this time he just fell short and lost to the New England Patriots. Kurt once again went to the Super Bowl during the 2008 season, as he barely lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers. All three of Kurt's Super Bowl performances are among the best in NFL history. We can see the results of being patient. Kurt in the short story was patient; I'm sure he felt at times like his dream was slipping away, as most of us do at times. But by being totally patient and worshiping God with praises and prayer, things will start falling into place for us all. It also shows God that we trust Him. As we remain patient, we let God work in our lives the way He intended. We should want to do things the way God wants us to. He wants us to be pleasing to Him in every way; by this we will produce good fruit. Colossians 1:10-11 says, "... that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy;" So many of us are impatient and that throws everything out of alignment because when we are impatient, we jump at the first thing that comes to us, whether it's a relationship, car, house, or job. When we do our own thing, then it's not from God. It's like we are saying to God, 'Well, I can't wait forever so I'm moving forward,' and when we do this, we are saying that we are better than God; we know more than God does. Throughout the Bible, we are given a few examples of the ones that waited on God; they were blessed, and there are the ones that refused to wait on God and they suffered for those consequences. For instance: Joshua took over for Moses and led Israel into the Promised Land, and soon he came upon the city of Jericho; this was the Canaanite's stronghold. Joshua was then out scouting the area ahead of his army. Just outside of Jericho, he came across another warrior. The warrior explained that he was the commander of the army of the Lord. Joshua 5:13-14 says, "And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, a Man stood opposite him with His sword drawn in His hand. And Joshua went to Him and said to Him, "Are You for us or for our adversaries?" So He said, "No, but as Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come." And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and said to Him, "What does my Lord say to His servant?" The Lord's commander went on to tell Joshua that the ground that he is standing on is holy ground. Joshua 5:15 says, "Then the Commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua, "Take your sandal off your foot, for the place where you stand is holy." And Joshua did so." The Lord then gave Joshua instructions on how he is to take

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From the Pulpit...Are you Patient? and capture Jericho.

The Lord said to Joshua to march his warriors around the city walls of Jericho once a day for six days. Then he told him on the seventh day, march all his men around the city of Jericho seven times; then blow the trumpet only after they are finished the final time around the city. Joshua then passed the instructions to the priests and his army. Joshua 6:15-20 says, "But it came to pass on the seventh day that they rose early, about the dawning of the day, and marched around the city seven times in the same manner. On that day only they marched around the city seven times. And the seventh time it happened, when the priests blew the trumpets, that Joshua said to the people: "Shout, for the Lord has given you the city! Now the city shall be doomed by the Lord to destruction, it and all who are in it. Only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all who are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent. And you, by all means abstain from the accursed things, lest you become accursed when you take of the accursed things, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it. But all the silver and gold, and vessels of bronze and iron, are consecrated to the Lord; they shall come into the treasury of the Lord." So the people shouted when the priests blew the trumpets. And it happened when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat. Then the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city." Now Joshua and the rest of the Israelites did follow God's orders right down to the letter. After they circled the city for the seventh time, they blew the trumpets and the city wall crumbled, and they all charged into the city of Jericho and conquered it. Joshua obeyed God's word, and by doing so, he showed great patience by waiting the whole seven days as God had instructed him to do and that made them successful. Abraham, in one instance, didn't wait on God. When the Lord God had appeared to Abraham, He promised him that He would give him all the land that he was looking at for his offspring. Genesis 13:15 says, "for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever." Another time that the Lord God appeared to him, Abraham asked God how would he be able to be a father to a great nation when he had no children. God promised Abraham that he would indeed be a father of a great nation. Genesis 15:5 says, "Then He brought him outside and said, "Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them." And He said to him, "So shall your descendants be." And he believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness." Now 10 years had passed since the Lord God's first promise to Abraham. Sarah was convinced that the Lord God had restrained her from having children so she told Abraham to go into her Egyptian maidservant whose name was Hagar, who became Abraham's wife with the hopes of her giving him a child. Hagar conceived. Abraham did not wait for God's promise to him. Genesis 16:1:4 says, "Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children. And she had an Egyptian maidservant whose name was Hagar. So Sarai said to Abram, "See now, the Lord has restrained me from bearing children. Please, go in to my maid; perhaps I shall obtain children by her." And Abram heeded the voice of Sarai. Then Sarai, Abram's

August 2021 His Grace Magazine! Page 7From the Pulpit...Are you Patient? wife, took Hagar her maid, the Egyptian, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan. So he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress became despised in her eyes." God then changed Abram's name to Abraham and Sarai to Sarah, because their names honored pagan deities.

Now Hagar gave birth to a son named Ishmael

Then many years later, God appeared again to Abraham and Sarah and promised the both of them a son. Now at this time both Abraham and Sarah were more than 100 years old. When God told Abraham this, Sarah laughed because she was well past the childbearing age. Genesis 18:10-13 says, "And He said, "I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and behold, Sarah your wife shall have a son." (Sarah was listening in the tent door which was behind him.) Now Abraham and Sarah were old, well advanced in age; and Sarah had passed the age of childbearing. Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, "After I have grown old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?" And the Lord said to Abraham, "Why did Sarah laugh, saying, 'Shall I surely bear a child, since I am old?' Now Sarah gave birth to a son named Isaac. At this time Ishmael was a teenager, and when Isaac became the center of attraction, Ishmael started to scoff at Isaac and this displeased Sarah, so she demanded that Hagar and Ishmael be kicked out into the wilderness. Genesis 21:9-11 says, "And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, scoffing. Therefore she said to Abraham, "Cast out this bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, namely Isaac." Arab nation, and And the matter was Isaac being Israel, very displeasing has been nothing but in Abraham's sight conflict after conflict because of his son." of hatred. All this Abraham should because of impatience. have waited on God Just think, if he had for his son Isaac, but he waited on God instead became so impatient of doing it himself, that he went ahead would there be the on his own and had conflict in the Middle Ishmael. Abraham's East that we have actions of inpatience today? put a rift between We all need to Ishmael and Isaac, step back, clear our one that would end minds and just be up separating them patient and trust God both. Now Abraham's to handle everything impatience would in our lives. Psalm delay God's blessing 27:14 says, "Wait on for him. It would the Lord; Be of good also produce turmoil courage, And He that still exists today. shall strengthen your Ishmael would go on heart; Wait, I say, on to be the father of the the Lord!" WOOD Ministries

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Lynne Wood wood.ministries.2020@gmail.com Owned and published by Rob Wood of Wood Ministries. Contact us @ 905-380-4489, or email us at wood.ministries.2020@gmail.com