"Our Prominence"

"By Thee have I been holden up from the womb: Thou art He that took me out of my mother's bowels: my praise shall be continually of Thee." (Psalms 71:6) What is the rush all about? I really think we need to get back to the point where we wait and listen; not just think we hear something, and then run out the door as if we have been sent out. It is not our responsibility to make things happen, we just need to show up and be available; God is the one that makes things happen, don't you know? That was the one thing Abraham is known for doing wrong; besides a few lies now and again, his effort to try and make God's promise happen on his own, is the big mistake that his descendants are still needing to deal with today. Moses too had a little problem with getting in the way of God's work; trying to make God's point clear to the people, he ended up misrepresenting God to the people. We really don't need to try and prove anything to God, or for God; He is the one that needs to be proven! That might not sound totally right, but it is probably the most accurate way to describe what it means to wait upon the Lord. Case in point, is the verse we have before us today; which might not appear very representative of waiting on the Lord, but where is our effort to get God's work done? There is no effort on our part at all, it's all God's doing! We just showed up and were available; but guess who was responsible for that? Speaking of wombs: What the heck is going on with these 'nut-birds' that are giving Dr. Carson such a hard time? He is absolutely right! We would better represent Jesus by love than by force any day of the week! We could never force anyone to change their mind; only God's love can change people's hearts, then their minds will soon change also. So you want to know how prominence works in our lives; it's not by being the loudest one in the room... "By His divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know Him, the One who called us to Himself by means of His marvelous glory and excellence. And because of His glory and excellence, He has given us great and precious promises. These are promises that enable you to share His divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires. In view of all of this, make every effort to respond to God's promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But those who fail to develop in this way are short-sighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins." (2 Peter 1:3-9) NLT