Do you have enough patience to receive God's blessings?
By: Steven B. Smethers DD
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Matthew 7:7-11
7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?
10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?
11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?


What does "WAIT" mean, it certainly has these qualities:

Eager, Patient, Expectant, Confident, Resting, Trusting......

The mental picture I get is one of Standing in Active Faith, resting from fear,and from self-reliance, confident that the Word will be fullfilled, expecting it any moment, without getting anxious about its comming.

PSA 37:7
Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself
because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth
wicked devices to pass.

ISA 30:18
And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you,
and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.

Luke 12:28-32
28 If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more [will he clothe] you, O ye of little faith?
29 And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind.
30 For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things.
31 But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.
32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

So often in our walks we will pray, LOOK to see IF its working, and if we don't see the manifestaion, go right back into prayer for it again, but now we are praying in an awareness that nothing happened, now we are following Sight not Faith. This is a continuous loop that can short circuit the work of God in our circumstances, and drain our faith and confidence in God... Instead, let us Pray Believing we Recieve, then have an "Ok, Lord, Im waiting here, Standing by Faith that you are Faithfull, and respecting your Word, that what I just confessed will come about, so I want to thank you that what I asked for is comming to pass, to thank you for its manifestation".

Don't LOOK to see IF it has happened Look Expecting to see God at Work, look expecting to learn more about God, about how he meets ALL our needs. God may use any method to answer your prayer. Don't expect your prayer to be answered with a messenger's knock at your door. (seek and ye shall find) Be a little patient. Make it a joyfull, patient, confident, thank filled Standing and Waiting. After all he is your ABBA father, and if you ask according to His will, you KNOW you will receive what you asked, and what is His will? His Word is His will. For no matter how many promises God has made, in Jesus they are YES, and by us is spoken the AMEN to the Glory of God...

John 15:16
16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and [that] your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.
32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

Do you have the kind of patience needed to receive God's blessings? Remember, if you will not give God a chance to act upon your prayers...then you cannot hold him responsible or accountable. Give Faith your ALL and your Father in Heaven will reward you abundantly. God is the creator of All things and through Him ALL things are made possible. Think about how patient God is with us.

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Written By: Rev. Steven B. Smethers DD
Senior Pastor / Administrator - UCMI