The speaker asks whether you're waiting on God or God is waiting on you. Using Paul and Silas's story, he argues you should take steps of faith without a complete picture, trust the Holy Spirit to redirect gently rather than punish, and use your gifts to meet needs while awaiting specific instructions.
Are you waiting on God, or is God waiting on you? While it's important to pray for direction from God, we mustn't be so afraid of failure that we do nothing at all while we wait. Here's a biblical example. Next, Paul and Silas traveled to the area of Phrygia and Galatia because the Holy Spirit had prevented them from preaching the word in the province of Asia at that time. Then, coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north for the province of Bithynia. But again, the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go there. So instead, they went through Mysia to the seaport of Troas. Notice here that Paul and Silas took steps of faith only to be redirected by the Holy Spirit. A few important things to note. Number one, the fact that they were redirected demonstrates that they didn't necessarily pray about every single step. Again, we ought to pray for direction from the Lord, but sometimes you just have to take a step of faith and trust God. As much as we pray, we're not always going to have the full picture. That's where faith comes in. Number 2, the Holy Spirit didn't get angry with them for getting it wrong. Notice that the Holy Spirit didn't rebuke Paul and Silas. Instead, he simply redirected them. There's this fear that many believers have that God is gonna be furious with them for getting something wrong, but he knows we're fallible. He planned for our mistakes. God isn't going to strike you down simply because you did something you believed he wanted you to do. Ground yourself in prayer and the word, Listen for the Holy Spirit's instructions, but then act. Finally, number 3. They saw a need and they tried to fill it. Paul and Silas saw a need, a region that needed the gospel, and they sought to fill that need. It's as simple as that. We are to use our specific gifts to fulfill God's general commands. Yes, God will often give us specific instructions, but while we wait for specific instructions, we should be busy fulfilling God's broader commands. To learn more about the voice of the Holy Spirit, get Holy Spirit: God Within You at encounterthespirit.com.
