Read: Jerimiah 15:20-21  |

Benefit # 5 of waiting in God’s Waiting Room – Fortify our Faith

Jeremiah wept.

He begged and pleaded with the people to listen to his warnings of impending doom and they still ignored him! He could not understand why they persecuted him for warning them of what was to come.

Jeremiah, the weeping prophet, followed God’s will. His mission was to give God’s last warning of repentance to Israel. They ignored him, so he told them that because of their unrepentant sin, God had turned against them and was now preparing to remove them from the land He gave to them.

Emotionally exhausted and at a low point from waiting for their positive response, Jeremiah became angry with God and was tempted to give up because he could only see desolation and despair in the future. However, his love for God was too deep to give out. While Jeremiah waited with God, he records for us his prayer and God’s answer in chapter 15. While waiting upon God, though stretched, strained and swamped, he held on which fortified his faith.

Fundamentals to Fortify Faith

Jeremiah’s faith increased by applying the basic fundamentals that each of us can apply while waiting upon, for and with God. The six fundamental principles are outlined in a posting entitled “Six Principles To Fortify Faith” and are expounded upon below:

1) THE VOICE PRINCIPLE
When we listen for His voice through reading His Word (Romans 10:17) and listening to the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:14-16) our faith will be more apparent in our actions and our speech.

2) THE VENTURE PRINCIPLE
When we venture outside of God’s umbrella, we struggle unnecessarily. Walking in obedience with Him is our responsibility during our journey; faith and understanding comes with time. (Hebrews 11:8)

Do not allow feelings and facts to get our faith off-track. Campus Crusade for Christ illustrates “Fact-Faith-Feeling” as a train in their booklet. The locomotive is “fact”. The coal car is “faith”. The caboose is “feeling”. It would be futile to try to push the train with the caboose! Stay with God to fuel our faith and testify to the fact of how much God loves us!

3) THE VALUE PRINCIPLE
Remember that as a believer, we are a citizen of Heaven (Philippians 3:20). Make our Heavenly Father proud by seeing us live out that fact. Additionally, understand that resistance to temptation is not futile, though it may feel as it is. (James 4:4,7; 1 John 2:15-17; Romans 12:2) If we do these things, our values will mind-meld with Christ and our faith will grow more entrenched in our lifestyles.

4) THE VISION PRINCIPLE
Perception can drive our faith if we do not view our lives through the spiritual lens God provides. (2 Corinthians 4:18; Colossians 3:1-2) Allow God to correct our near/far sightedness by trusting Him to keep his promise in His perfect time. This allows our faith to see us through situations that we had deemed impossible to bear.

5) THE VIGILANCE PRINCIPLE
God’s got it. Whatever it is, He has it under control. Stay vigilant and guard the heart from the wiles of Satan. (I Peter 1:7; Ephesians 6:12) Though he may prune things in our lives, as we go through the pain of the process, we can have confidence that we will come through stronger than when we started. (Romans 5:3-5)

6) THE VICTORY PRINCIPLE
The battle is not yours it is the Lord’s! Be a strong, courageous conquers’ assistant. (Joshua 1:9; Romans 8:31,37-38;Romans 8:37-39;Ephesians 6:10) Those who wait upon God win and strengthen their faith.

While we wait upon God, a more enduring faith will result from following the fundamentals of voice, venture, value, vision, vigilance and victory. Without them, all our fortifications become like ripe figs—when the tree is shaken, the fruit falls. (Nahum 3:12a)

Questions:
1.Discover –
A. Which of the six fundamentals do you feel you do well already – fundamentals of voice, venture, value, vision, vigilance and victory.
B. Which of the six fundamentals do you feel that you have room for improvement?

2.Develop –
A. How much time each day/week do you spend in Quiet Time where you slow down and listen to God’s voice? Share with your prayer partner
B. Share a short testimony of how your faith has grown while waiting upon God to act.

3.Demonstrate –
A. “Fact-Faith-Feeling” – How do you keep the train in the right order?
B. We are called to be courageous (Joshua 1:9) and to trust and rely on God, would your family and friends say that they have seen you “be courageous” while enduring a challenge? If not, how can you change so that you can be courageous, knowing that God is on your side?

Profiles on Waiting Outline

Overview – Why and How to wait upon/for/with God (link)

Benefits – Why Wait?
1. Discover God’s Purpose (link)
2. Receive Spiritual Adrenaline (link)
3. Win Battles (link)
4. Hear Answers to our Prayer (link)
5. Fortify our Faith (link)

Postures we should adopt when waiting for/with/upon God
1. Wait on Time (link)
2. Watch for Him (link)
3. Wait by walking within Touching Distance (link)
4. Work while waiting upon God’s Answer (link)
5. Willful Waiting does not Wilt (link)
6. Weather the Storms while waiting under His Umbrella (link)
7. Wait with an Unwavering Faith (link)