Encouraged by Community

Christianity is a sense of community, a body of believers; their purpose other then ultimately following and worshiping God together is to encourage, strengthen, and uphold one another in the values and truth's of God's word.  Sometimes we are the ones speaking the truths and forming the words to encourage others, but other times it is the word of a Christian brother or sister who encourages us and strengthens us and roots us again in God's promises and truths.  While, these words I'm about to share are not uniquely mine, they are from God because they are the words my heart has been needing to hear.  My hope in sharing these is to pass along the encouragement and truth of God working in His children, in His Church, and in His body of believers.

J. Hampton Keathley III writes in his article Waiting on the Lord...

The essence of waiting is trust or faith in the nature and character of God.  No one can wait on the Lord if he or she does not truely trust in God as the rock of their strength and refuge in all of life.  Waiting means claiming God's promises by faith and resting in what God is doing in our lives so we can faithfully follow God's principles and keep his values, priorities, and pursuits.

 The opposite of waiting and resting by faith is turning to our solutions of self-protection because of anger, fear, and jealousy.  We fret, we moan and groan, we withdraw or run from the problem.  We may try to control others, call attention to ourselves to bolster our feelings of inadequacy or to defend ourselves against the comments of others.  Out of fear of failure or loss, we may compromise our convictions or what we know is right.  But fear, which has displaced faith in the Lord, causes us to lean on the arm of the flesh.

Lamentations 3:25 The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, To the person who seeks Him.

Psalm 62:5-8 My soul, wait in silence for God only, For my hope is from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation, My stronghold; I shall not be shaken.  On God my salvation and my glory rest; The rock of my strength, my refuge is God. Trust in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah.

Isaiah 8:17 I will wait for the LORD, who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob.  I will put my trust in him.