Genesis 8:1-16, Remain Patient - Revision history

Wakefien: /* Noah's tests were not tests of God in the sense of doubting Him; rather, Noah’s actions showed that he believed God and wanted to know how far along he was in God's plan.= */

2024-10-13T00:47:55Z

‎Noah's tests were not tests of God in the sense of doubting Him; rather, Noah’s actions showed that he believed God and wanted to know how far along he was in God's plan.=

Wakefien: /* MTR: Evaluate your own life. Where is God asking you to be patient right now? Are you willing to abide in God? */

2024-10-08T18:56:07Z

‎MTR: Evaluate your own life. Where is God asking you to be patient right now? Are you willing to abide in God?

Wakefien: /* MTR: Determine that when patience is required, you will take time to wait */

2024-10-08T18:55:54Z

‎MTR: Determine that when patience is required, you will take time to wait

Wakefien: /* God rewarded Noah's patience with a clear answer (15-16) */

2024-10-08T18:55:41Z

‎God rewarded Noah's patience with a clear answer (15-16)

Wakefien: /* God rewarded Noah's patience with a clear answer (15-16) */

2024-10-08T18:55:27Z

‎God rewarded Noah's patience with a clear answer (15-16)

Wakefien: /* The dry land must have been inviting, but Noah waited for God (13-14) */

2024-10-08T18:54:54Z

‎The dry land must have been inviting, but Noah waited for God (13-14)

Wakefien: /* Image: Being willing to wait is really hard */

2024-10-08T18:54:02Z

‎Image: Being willing to wait is really hard

Wakefien: /* Noah's patience reveals that he was willing to wait on God's timing (12) */

2024-10-08T18:53:45Z

‎Noah's patience reveals that he was willing to wait on God's timing (12)

Wakefien: /* Noah's persistence reveals that his trust was more than skin deep (9-11) */

2024-10-08T18:52:39Z

‎Noah's persistence reveals that his trust was more than skin deep (9-11)

Wakefien: /* Noah's test reveals that he trusted God in the midst of patient waiting (6-8) */

2024-10-08T18:51:49Z

‎Noah's test reveals that he trusted God in the midst of patient waiting (6-8)

@@ Line 76: / Line 76: @@
 ====The dove and raven prove that Noah expected God was going to restore the Earth.====
-====Noah's tests were not tests of God in the sense of doubting Him; rather, Noah’s actions showed that he believed God and wanted to know how far along he was in God's plan.=====
+=====Noah's tests were not tests of God in the sense of doubting Him; rather, Noah’s actions showed that he believed God and wanted to know how far along he was in God's plan.=====
 =====Waiting patiently for God does not mean doing nothing; it means trusting all the details to God.=====

@@ Line 137: / Line 137: @@
 ===MTR: Evaluate your own life. Where is God asking you to be patient right now? Are you willing to abide in God?===
-Specifically, what does it mean to abide in God's assurance?
+====Specifically, what does it mean to abide in God's assurance?====
-We demonstrate complete obedience and patience in our walk with God, taking steps only when He directs us.
+=====We demonstrate complete obedience and patience in our walk with God, taking steps only when He directs us.=====

@@ Line 102: / Line 102: @@
 ===MTR: Determine that when patience is required, you will take time to wait===
-How? By taking time to pray faithfully over major and minor decisions.
+====How? By taking time to pray faithfully over major and minor decisions.====
 ==''Abiding in God's Assurance'' - Patience is only possible if you abide in God (8:13-16)==

@@ Line 127: / Line 127: @@
 **God's answers may come from conversations with His people.
 **God's answers may come from the direction of the Spirit.
 Regardless, wait for God's answers. If you don't have peace, if no one else has seen the answer, and the Spirit is not leading you, then maybe you are in a Noah situation. The cover has been removed; you see what is good, but God hasn't told you to go just yet. If that's the case, then I would encourage you that instead of jumping in feet first, take a moment and ask God to give you a clear indication.
 ===Image: Gideon and the fleece===

@@ Line 120: / Line 120: @@
 ===God rewarded Noah's patience with a clear answer (15-16)===
-Finally, after 370 days, Noah and his family emerged from the ark. Noah patiently waited, and God definitively answered.
+<p>Finally, after 370 days, Noah and his family emerged from the ark. Noah patiently waited, and God definitively answered.
 So, what does that look like today?
+</p>
-We should wait for God when making decisions.
+*We should wait for God when making decisions.
-*God's answers may come through the study of His Word.
+**God's answers may come through the study of His Word.
-*God's answers may come from conversations with His people.
+**God's answers may come from conversations with His people.
-*God's answers may come from the direction of the Spirit.
+**God's answers may come from the direction of the Spirit.
 Regardless, wait for God's answers. If you don't have peace, if no one else has seen the answer, and the Spirit is not leading you, then maybe you are in a Noah situation. The cover has been removed; you see what is good, but God hasn't told you to go just yet. If that's the case, then I would encourage you that instead of jumping in feet first, take a moment and ask God to give you a clear indication.

@@ Line 108: / Line 108: @@
 ===The dry land must have been inviting, but Noah waited for God (13-14)===
 days after the flood began, Noah finally removed the cover from the ark, opening it to the new world in which Noah found himself. The ground was finally able to support life, but Noah was willing to wait for God.
+</p>
 I've seen many a kid throw away a key part of a present because they didn't wait. I remember one Christmas, after burning the wrapping paper at the conclusion of unwrapping presents, my cousin realized that in the process of unwrapping gifts, he had left the gift card in the pile of paper.
+</p>
 We live in a world filled with blessings, but we must be careful. God is the giver of every perfect gift. [https://ref.ly/logosref/BibleNIV.Jas1.17 James 1:17] states, "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." Since God gives the gifts, we can trust His timing. When we abide in God's provision, we don't throw away the best part.
+</p>
 Noah waited.

@@ Line 94: / Line 94: @@
 I'm guessing that at this point, some of you want to ask me about all sorts of specific, nuanced scenarios and what it means to wait on God's timing. Well, guess what? I think this is one of those situations where, if you just take a second, you know what it looks like. In the moment, we know what it looks like to jump ahead of God and what it looks like to wait. If we just slow down and take a moment to pray, then we know!
-===Image: Being willing to wait is really hard===
+===Image: Being willing to wait is really hard, Flying home from Alabama.===
 It was a stormy day, and Emily and I were in the middle of nowhere in Mississippi. We had just landed after flying through the worst storm I had ever been in earlier that morning. The clouds were thick above us, and I told Emily, "We are not doing that again. If the clouds are not at least 1,200 feet above the ground, we will not take off." "Agreed," she told me, and so we waited. After a nap, we checked the weather—900 feet was the report. "Well," I said, "there is a car here at the airport for pilots to use. Do you want to go into town and get Waffle House?" Dumb question—of course she did! As we sat at Waffle House, the rain began to fall (and like every good Waffle House, the roof began to leak). Good thing we waited, or we would have been in yet another storm.

@@ Line 88: / Line 88: @@
 ===Noah's patience reveals that he was willing to wait on God's timing (12)===
 I know what I would have done. The minute the ark came to rest, I would have popped open the door and gotten knee-deep in mud before realizing I had a major problem. Noah was patient. Noah waited on God.
+</p>
 I'm guessing that at this point, some of you want to ask me about all sorts of specific, nuanced scenarios and what it means to wait on God's timing. Well, guess what? I think this is one of those situations where, if you just take a second, you know what it looks like. In the moment, we know what it looks like to jump ahead of God and what it looks like to wait. If we just slow down and take a moment to pray, then we know!

@@ Line 80: / Line 80: @@
 ===Noah's persistence reveals that his trust was more than skin deep (9-11)===
 The raven in verse 7 is a scavenger and would have been capable of feeding on floating carcasses. Releasing the raven was a reminder that life would continue, but it was not a guarantee that life would flourish. The dove, on the other hand, was a test to see if life on the renewed Earth could flourish. Initially, the answer was "not yet." But as days passed, the dove returned first with a leaf, and then it did not return at all. The answer was clear—God was renewing the Earth.
+</p>
-Noah could have given up once the dove came back empty. He could have settled in his heart that God had fulfilled the promise to save him but for nothing more than scraping by on the ark or in its immediate vicinity. But Noah did not settle. Noah's faith had depth, and he expected God's fulfillment of the promise to be complete.
+====Noah could have given up once the dove came back empty. He could have settled in his heart that God had fulfilled the promise to save him but for nothing more than scraping by on the ark or in its immediate vicinity.====
+=====But Noah did not settle. Noah's faith had depth, and he expected God's fulfillment of the promise to be complete.=====
-Here is a thought: Does the depth of our faith impact the depth of fulfillment we expect from God?
+=====Here is a thought: Does the depth of our faith impact the depth of fulfillment we expect from God?=====
 ===Noah's patience reveals that he was willing to wait on God's timing (12)===

@@ Line 75: / Line 75: @@
 *56 days later (370 days in), God commanded Noah to leave the ark.
-The dove and raven prove that Noah expected God was going to restore the Earth. Noah's tests were not tests of God in the sense of doubting Him; rather, Noah’s actions showed that he believed God and wanted to know how far along he was in God's plan. Waiting patiently for God does not mean doing nothing; it means trusting all the details to God.
+====The dove and raven prove that Noah expected God was going to restore the Earth.====
 ===Noah's persistence reveals that his trust was more than skin deep (9-11)===