Are you growing weary while waiting for the promise? Bill Johnson | Q&A

Hope deferred makes the heart sick what

do you do when you have gone weary of

waiting for the promise of God you know

you could answer that one that’s one of

your strong strong points you know we’ve

been kind of forced to be a wrong word

but I feel like directed into this

subject as a being able to live in the

midst of disappointment is how we’ve

done well yep it’s just you know on the

surface that a distance people may may

get the wrong idea that it’s just all

miracles and breakthroughs I mean they

sure you remember we had ten people

close to us in the church died in 18

months mm-hmm and how do you weather

that how do you walk navigate that kind

of stuff personal friends young people

horrible things and how do you walk

through that how do you navigate that

contending for a breakthrough and just

not getting it without blaming God the

only way I know to do it is as my I

don’t hold God hostage to one particular

answer for example I need I need you

know a breakthrough and let’s just say

finances that if God is really good then

I’m going to get a breakthrough here and

what happens is people unintentionally

hold their entire esteem in view of

God’s nature presence purpose all that

stuff is hinged on that one answer yes

so they withhold themselves from giving

themselves completely to God in the mean

time and it’s just not fair it’s not

fair for own development it’s not honest

incorrect towards God well we have to do

is learn how to celebrate all that God

is doing right now and that’s why I

constantly am hammering on this subject

of feeding your heart of what God’s

doing feeding your heart think about

dwell discuss talk with other friends

share the good news of what had what is

happening because that that fuels a an

atmosphere of anticipation

it keeps me constantly reminded of his

good

I see where he’s faithful time after

time after time and in that environment

it’s really tough honestly to get

discouraged I may have this nagging

problem here and it may be a whole lot

bigger than a money issue it may be a

health issue or family of the crisis or

whatever yeah this thing is always there

and I it doesn’t help to live in denial

and pretend that it’s not there but it

sure does help that I am that 90 percent

of my life is filled with strength so

that I have I have the energy of God if

you will the life of God God stirred up

within me that I might have an answer

for this 10% of my life that just seems

to be dragging me down yeah I I just you

just can’t afford to I will not allow

myself to accuse God I will not allow

myself to think of him as anything but

good you know I will only accept

information about him that affirms that

I won’t if somebody somebody shares a

testimony and they’ll talk about how God

uses sickness in their family in my

heart I retranslated yeah I don’t need

to try to correct everyone and I I don’t

I don’t bother with that it’s not my not

my job but it’s my heart as they say I

know that God gave me cancer brought my

family together all these people got

saved as a result and I’m so thankful

for the privilege of enduring that

disease all right I read translated in

my heart God I know you didn’t give

cancer

you’re not the author of that devilish

disease but you’re so big that you can

win with any hand that’s dealt you and

you reverse the effectiveness and I give

you praise so I’m able to rejoice with

them without being combative yeah is I

can celebrate the part of the story

that’s right and that’s what I do my

whole life you know I have two

retranslate and reinterpret things that

go on and I refuse to entertain ideas

you bring his character into question I

just I can’t do it yeah once I do it

it’s a nosedive because everything we do

everything we are is hinged on his

goodness yep everything yeah this abuse

question probably I gave us this one the

bazillion times as well yeah and I if

I’m gonna follow up question no one I

asked

you just the people tend to ask a lot is

well how do I know if it’s you know what

if something caused it that I’m not

aware if I need to go repent for it or

there’s somebody to do some sin and you

know so there’s almost they’re trying to

figure out why the I call it the ye

ology why did this happen right and the

people I interact with they get really

caught up in that i right were they just

nosedive like you said what advice do

you have to them obviously they’re

focused on what the Lord is doing but

this thing is eating people alive you

know it’s just it’s just eating at them

in regards to did I do something wrong

and how hard do I push in to find out if

there’s something I need to do receive

my breakthrough that tension I’m huge

you have any advice for people that

really um you know I mean I can tell

people what I do I don’t know that if

still follow but yeah

I don’t ask why yep I mean I just don’t

go into the whys because it what I do is

this is father you know I want to learn

and but you don’t ever have to explain

yourself to me I am willing to live with

mystery yeah

what I know is enough and I know that

you’re good and I know you’ve give

promise for every situation that is

enough for me

mm-hmm I know I’m accountable for that

yep if you’ll teach me I would love it

but I don’t hold you hostage to an

answer if you want peace that passes

understanding you usually have to give

up your right to understand you know you

have to you have to get it before you

get an answer an explanation so that’s

my approach in that approach I will say

Lord if there’s something wrong with me

I mean your word every day and you said

it’s a sword

you said it cuts deep I invite you cut

me deep speak to me through your word

I’m with your people all the time yeah

I’m with close friends I’m with

strangers use somebody to give me the

slap of a friend yeah if that’s what I

need please speak to me mm-hmm I mean

your presence constantly I love your

presence I worship

your presence is like a consuming fire

do something in me that glory changes do

something but I’m not gonna go out a win

shot witch hunt to find out what’s wrong

with my life and so that I can feel

better about my circumstances you know I

I don’t I feel like we as believers we

have to be willing to live with mystery

or we don’t do well yeah so never

blaming God and being okay with mystery

yep yep

don’t blame who got the attention yep be

okay with mystery yeah be ready to learn

mm-hmm but don’t don’t I won’t sit there

and wait you know like I feel to explain

yourself well I would get up and move on

in life no I’m gonna be the last thing

he told me yeah exactly yeah I don’t

have the options of you know as a

soldier you do the last thing the

commanding officer told you to do you

don’t have the option of saying well

yeah but this last battlefield didn’t go

so well you don’t have that option

yeah I don’t I think we have going every

time we hear protectin we’re always say

one day closer when they close the

closure

yeah just for the sake of those that are

watching of course you’re hearing that’s

been an issue that we’ve contended for

for a long time among many many years

and the Lord gave me a very very clear

word I could take you back to the to the

location and how he spoken what he did

but in that process you know there have

been so many people that have been

healed of deafness and different levels

of deafness and for the sake of the

audience I come back to the staff

meeting and we’ll share another story in

fact one of them was bizarre because it

was a tea was actually ended up 85

people and one night got healed I was in

a chef as did Alison dalla I was in

Dallas 85 people or one night 82 within

just a few minutes of each other just

was one sweeping thing bizarre so I come

home and I share the story in Eric’s

response to me as they shared to the

whole staff I look over my over up my

son and he’ll look at me and he says

we’re one day closer to death yeah

that’s right no

and that’s that’s that’s it is you have

to value mystery without putting blame

mm-hmm without having it tarnish or

diminish or esteem of his nature and

character you know there’s no lack in

his end of the equation mm-hmm yep

you’ve done it well

another thing that for me is Abraham

wait a long time for these standards

pretty high so that we’re talking about

100 years yeah a long time Oh bummer so

we can do it now that’s my point that’s

right we can do