Waiting on the Lord – The Crucible of Purification

Waiting is a crucible. Almost nothing causes your flesh to burn like waiting on the Lord. Bob Sorge recently tweeted, “There is no hotter flame than waiting on God. That’s why God calls you to wait—He’s refining you.” Bob knows what He’s talking about, having walked a path of waiting few of us have ever experienced.

When we understand that God uses waiting as a means to purify our hearts it gives us courage to persevere, though we may wait long. We know that the outcome of the waiting is ultimately for our good and blessing, though the pain of the waiting can be excruciating.

Waiting on the Lord – Defining Waiting

When the bible talks about waiting on the Lord, what exactly is it talking about? Waiting is quieting yourself in stillness with hopeful expectation of the Lord’s leadership and action in your life. It’s ceasing for your own ways to allow the Lord to accomplish His will through your life in His way. Waiting is not idleness nor laziness. It’s not in opposition to work. It is actively choosing to pause, maybe for an extended period of time, in order to allow the Lord to show Himself strong on your behalf.

Waiting and Hoping are synonymous. Consider Psalm 130:5, “I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, And in His word I do hope.” When we wait on the Lord we position ourselves in hopeful expectation of His activity in our lives.

There are multiple components to waiting on the Lord. Here are a few that helped give me clarity as to what waiting on the Lord is really about.

VIDEO INTERVIEW: Sean Feucht – Convergence Prayer & Mission

GUEST BLOG: Sean Feucht – Prayer and Mission

Sean Feucht is the founder of Burn 24-7 a grassroots global, prayer, worship and missions organization. I see “The Burn” as one of the signs of God’s unique activity in the combining of prayer & mission. Sean and his teams literally travel around the world igniting the fire of prayer and worship in the context of mission. Here’s a blog from his recent trip to Mozambique:

4 Movements The Holy Spirit is Emphasizing Right Now

I regularly have the opportunity to interface with different leaders in the body of Christ. I’m always interested to ask them what the Lord has been speaking to them. It’s very encouraging when I hear unrelated leaders from different streams of the Body of Christ doing the same things by the Spirit’s leading. Over the last six months I’ve noticed several movements that are clearly being emphasized by the Lord. Each of these movements seems to have the Holy Spirit’s wind on them. I think it’s important to identify them so we can pay attention and engage with what the Spirit is saying to the church in this hour.

5 Keys to Make Prayer Meetings More Enjoyable

If you’ve been in church a little while, it’s likely you’ve been to a rough prayer meeting or two. What I mean by rough is a meeting that wasn’t exactly exhilarating; a meeting that you went away from more burdened than when you came. I’ve been to a few in my life. Ok, if I’m honest, I’ve led a few. The Bible promises that we’ll be joyful in His presence. If that’s the case why are our prayer meetings at times so … boring? I’ve come to find that there are certain elements that can really help our prayer meetings become, dare I say it, enjoyable.

The Call to Night & Day Prayer

Isa 62:6 – 7  I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; They shall never hold their peace day or night. You who make mention of the LORD, do not keep silent, 7  And give Him no rest till He establishes And till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth.

God is raising up a prayer movement all across the earth right now. I stand in awe as I see the  Scriptures being fulfilled in a very specific way in this generation. In no other generation has night and day prayer taken hold as it has in our generation.  Twenty years ago, a ministry of 24-hour worship and intercession would have been an oddity in the body of Christ. Today, all over the world God is raising up praying churches and houses of prayer who are devoted  to night and day worship and prayer. God has made ceaseless worship and intercession a central focus of His church and it continues to grow.

Possessing the Remnant of Edom

I just returned from a whirlwind trip to the Middle East where I visited four nations, Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan & Egypt, in 11 days. The believers I connected with were absolutely precious, heroes in the kingdom, standing strong in the midst of very challenging circumstances. It was an honor to meet and encourage them in the Lord. I think I was more encouraged by them than they were by me.

The atmosphere of each country is unique but at the same time each has one outstanding thing in common. Each has wholeheartedly embraced Islam as a mainstay of it’s culture. This is evidenced by the many mosques that dot the landscape and the Muslim call to prayer that rings out throughout their cities.