The "Mean" While

Do you have a list of specific things you are praying for? Things you believe God will do for you? Are you pressing towards a promise and not allowing anything or anyone to convince you to let go of your faith? Are you expecting "Great Things" to happen in your life; things which will move you from the place you are now to the place you will be in the future you envision?

If you have this list, then you are like me. I have things I'm praying for too; things I am believing God will do for me. I'm expecting to move from the level I am today to whatever level God has been preparing me for too; in my family life, in my professional life, as an author, as a musician, and as a worship leader.

I've got the scriptures, I recite confessions, and I've been holding on. I am believing that the Spirit of God will produce what I have asked. I'm believing God is Jehovah Jireh; that He will provide in the places where I need Him to provide and make conquers out of us all. I'm holding on to God's Word simply because there's nothing else I can hold on to.

I hear the word "sacrifice". I don't have much to give other than my willingness to give. I offer God my dedication, as limited as I find it to be. I offer God devotion; whatever devotion I can muster at this stage in my life and I continuously pray for a willingness to offer Him more. I'm doing the work I know to do... and even some of what I'm not sure of. What I offer God, though small, incomplete and unworthy, is the best I have. It's all I have... Is it not good enough? Is it not done well enough? Is it not big enough? Is it not enough? Then, what is enough?

If you have had this discussion with God or with yourself; especially if you've had this conversation more than once, pay close attention...
You are probably in a period of time in your life which many preachers call the "Meanwhile". This is a period when you are doing all types of work but feel you are not getting results. It's a time when you feel as though God is standing idley aside watching you struggle to jump through hoop after hoop while shaking His head in disappointment, then raising the hoops higher. It's when fear, doubt and frustration all collide into turmoil, questions and prolonged waiting sometimes bordering on depression. You feel distant from God, as if you are struggling while God is on vacation. Things can get "mean" and "ugly" in the "Meanwhile".

Call it your wilderness, your valley experience, whatever you want to call it. Basically, it's the time you face between the time you pray for something and the time you walk into your promise. It's testing time!

I'm certain you are familiar with the law of sowing and reaping. You experience this law whenever you pick fruit from a fruit tree or nurture flowers in a garden. You also experience this law when you make financial investments and as you raise children. The way this law operates is simple: You sow a seed, then cultivate that seed in order to one day reap a harvest. We recognize this law as the preferred system of operation of the Kingdom of God as described in the book of Galatians,

"... Whatsoever a man sow, that shall he also reap" Galatians 6:8

Galatians goes further to say that to believe anything other than this simple rule is an attempt to mock God. What we don't always understand, however, is that this law of sowing and reaping is governed by 3 strict rules:

#1. You will reap what you sow

#2. You will reap later then you sow it and

#3. You will reap more then you've sown.

Rule #1 and Rule #3 are self-explanatory. Rule #1 says you will reap what you sow. This means you cannot expect to reap something different than what you have sown. For example, you can't sow rice into a field but expect a harvest of fruit. This would be mocking God as mentioned above in Galatians. Whatever you sow, that and that only is what you will reap. Then, Rule #3 says you will reap more than you sow. In other words, your harvest will be larger than the initial seed. In nature seeds come in sizes as small as pollen, but each time, what is produced is many times larger then what went into the ground.

The "Meanwhile" has mostly to do with Rule #2. You will reap later then you sow. Your "Meanwhile" is the period of time between the time you sow a seed and the time you harvest. You are fasting and praying; you are being consistent with your confessions; you are exercising your faith; never letting a contrary word come out of your mouth; your seed is in the ground. Next is the wait; and there will always be a wait!

During the "Meanwhile", Satan try's desperately to get your seed uprooted. He try's to influence you to give up, neglect your investment, stop nurturing your seed; just let your faith fall.

Look at the "Meanwhile" Jesus went through. It begins in Matthew chapter 4. First, Jesus' pride was tested as the devil dared him to feed himself in the middle of the desert which would have shown his authority. Next, Satan tried to convince Jesus to kill himself by taking him to the top of the temple and saying, "cast thyself down... " claiming angels would save him. And in his final attempt, Satan vowed to hand-over the whole Earth in exchange for Jesus' surrender. How many of us could have withstood the "Meanwhile" that Jesus beard? How many of us would have surrendered at the first temptation and turned the stone to bread? Or, how many of us would have given up on God and accepted the devils terms to receive the entire world on a silver platter in exchange for our mortal souls? How many of us already have? Hopefully none.

So why the wait? Why is there a meanwhile? Why doesn't a harvest just spring up minutes after it is planted instead of months or years?

The purpose of the wait is the seed you've planted must have time to grow roots. Everything within that seed has to stretch out of the seed's container into the good soil that will produce fruit (there's a sermon tucked away in that sentence alone). The wait is necessary for nourishment and cultivation to take place.

Consider this: What if you received a vision today that showed you what you where gaining by the time you spend in your "meantime"? What if God showed you the strength that waiting provides? What if He showed you the maturity and the confidence that will result from the time you spend believing God's Word before you received your miracle? What if God laid it all out for you so you could see exactly what He is building in you and why it is taking so long? Then would you be able to make it through the "Meanwhile"?

Of course you could. You would see clearly that God's plan is perfect in every way and, because of God's infinite wisdom, I'm certain what you saw would literally blow your mind! And you'd never complain about your "meanwhile" ever again.

Now consider what FAITH is. Paul describes faith as the substance of what you are hoping for and the evidence of what you can not see. God has designed His Kingdom on Earth to operate with FAITH as the substance for what we expect from Him. And FAITH also acts as the evidence that what we believe is true. We must cultivate every seed with FAITH if we expect it to grow. In fact, the bible says it is impossible to please God without FAITH (Hebrews 11). Jesus said FAITH is so dynamic that even if it were as small as a single grain of mustard seed, it could still produce enough power to move an entire mountain! Now that's powerful!

Waiting through your "meanwhile" may seem tough; but really, it is not the hard part. Waiting is actually unavoidable. Certain things are just outside of your control where you literally have no choice but to either wait or give up.

Waiting PATIENTLY, however, is what's difficult. Patient waiting means not only that you wont give up, but also that you wont try to "speed up"; that you wont try other alternatives; that you wont Involve yourself in an endless barrage of attempts to "help God". Too often we instinctively assume that if we do more work than we are supposed to do, we will get results faster. But God is the Lord of every harvest, thus no matter what we do, the harvest will be what our sovereign God has decided. Period. Obedience to God is our participation in the system that God has established for us. But, at the end of the day, the harvest is God's to give and not ours to demand.

The bible says PATIENCE is better than pride (Ecclesiastics 7:8). PATIENCE is also one of the Fruits of the Spirit. But, I'll admit; it's hard to be patient while you wait; especially when you are desperate.

Two things will help you wait patiently through your "Meanwhile":

A. Recognize immediately when you are in a "Meanwhile". This is critical, otherwise you will feel abused having to suffer through all of the emotions: doubt, temptation, and frustration, even anger. Recognize that Satan is working on you and don't allow him to be successful. My friend, Minister Jason Caranto put it best,

"The devil is after your future more than your present! He's determined to destroy what will become before it is!... "

B. Get your scriptures ready. When things get "mean" you need to reinforce your confidence. Draw closer to God for strength; rebuild your faith! Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17).

Have the right scriptures memorized, book marked and highlighted. Be ready to "draw your sword" at a moments notice.

Question: What is the right scripture?

Answer: The one you need at the time!

Jesus didn't get complicated with Satan. When Jesus was under attack, he simply answered the attack by quoting scriptures,

"Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only'"

Final thought... Hebrews 6:19 says,

"We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain" Hebrews 6:19

Hope will pull you through your "Meanwhile". God is not looking at you with disappointment. You are his most prized-possession. Though your failures pain Him, they are also no surprise to Him. He knew of each before the foundation of the world and yet predestined you to become His child. Remember that the trouble you face in your meanwhile is what cultivates you to receive what you have asked for; which is what God has in His will for your life.

And Remember Rule #3; your harvest will be bigger than the seed! It will be worth the wait through the mean, mean, "Meanwhile". You will make it if you focus less on the wait and more on the harvest. Strive to make patient-waiting your biggest accomplishment during this season in your life.