We must celebrate with a feast. For this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found. So the party began.
–Luke 15:23-24

This past weekend, our kids threw us a birthday party. We’re only six weeks apart in age and after nearly 36 years of marriage, we’ve celebrated many birthdays together. How many years? Let’s just say it was an important “decade birthday” for both of us and leave it at that.  We were so blessed to gather with family and friends in the backyard to share laughs, stories, and lots of good food, enjoy the sounds of live smooth jazz, and of course, eat cake!

As I think about the evening, I’m reminded of another party.  In the story of the prodigal son, the younger of two sons demanded his inheritance early, left home, and wasted his money on wild living. When the money ran out and he had to resort to eating with the pigs in order to survive, he returned home to his father to ask for forgiveness and offer his services as a hired hand. The father spotted his long lost son from a distance and, filled with love and compassion, ran out to greet him. In spite of all this son had done, the father celebrated his return by dressing him in fine clothing and throwing him a party. His father never condemned him and his identity as a son never changed.

Our relationship with our Heavenly Father is exactly the same. We don’t have to leave home and squander an inheritance on wild living to break fellowship with Him.  We have plenty of opportunities every day to sin, fall short, and to react in offense to the mistakes of others. We can lose our patience with people and situations, harbor anger or bitterness, neglect our devotional time, and take matters into our own hands instead of taking them to God. We can let our flesh take over, and before we know it, we’re eating with the pigs (Romans 8:6).  The good news is, while we may drift in and out of fellowship with God, His relationship with us never changes. His tender mercies start fresh every morning (Lamentations 3:23). We can never lose our identity as a child of God (Galatians 3:26). He always welcomes us back home with open arms of grace, whether we’ve been away for 10 years, 10 days or 10 minutes (Romans 8:14-16). The privilege of this sacred fellowship was bought and paid for by the blood of His Son (Hebrews 4:15-16).  And each time we come back, there’s a celebration in heaven as He adds one more layer to our coat of righteousness.  I think it’s time to party.

You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!—Isaiah 26:3

It’s no secret I don’t like waiting in lines, following slow traffic, or calling to ask a simple question of a real person and following a voice response system into the abyss.  I know God is refining my patience because He gives me plenty of opportunities to fix my thoughts on Him and get this right. In this instant world where everything from our next meal to information to real time communication is right at our fingertips, we’ve lost the art of waiting. Peace and patience go hand in hand. It is the fruit of allowing the Holy Spirit to control our lives (Galatians 5:22). When we’ve lost our patience, we’ve lost our peace.

If we can’t be patient through the minor inconveniences in life, it will be especially hard to find God’s peace in waiting for the big stuff. There are some desires hidden in the deepest places of my heart—some unanswered prayers—where God’s promises have yet to unfold. And from my perspective, some of these prayers are time sensitive!  Sometimes I feel like the disciples crossing the lake to escape the crowds. When a fierce storm arose and the high waves filled the boat with water, they cried out desperately for Jesus to DO something: “Teacher, don’t you even care that we are going to drown?” Jesus was taking a nap (Mark 4:35-39)!

I’ve crafted a prayer of patience for those times when I feel like the Lord is not moving according to my timetable. Maybe it will help you find His peace while you’re waiting…

Father God, I know you want to bless me with the gift of divine patience and I want to receive this gift. Help me to wait expectantly in your presence for your promises and plans to unfold. I trust your timing is perfect. In this time of waiting, help me to seek your face and draw closer to your heart. Use this time to deepen my relationship with you and increase my faith. Protect me from discouragement when your plans unfold at a slower pace than I would like. Protect me from believing the lie that my dreams have died and it’s too late for my prayers to be answered. Remind me that your ways are counter intuitive to the ways of the world. Father, give me the faith and patience that you gave Abraham and Sarah who waited a lifetime for your promises to come to pass. Let Jesus be my model for a patient lifestyle. He had only three years to accomplish the greatest Kingdom assignment ever known to mankind, but He moved at a holy and patient pace, trusting you with every step. Help me to remember that you know the desires of my heart. I pray that my trust and confidence in you will increase with each day I wait in your perfect peace.  In His name, amen.

 I just had the honor of attending my third CBA International Christian Retailer Show in Orlando where I signed advanced reader copies of my third book, Peace for Each Hour. What a privilege to interact with such an amazing group of talented, committed followers of Christ. For over 60 years, the show has been highlighting new trends and introducing new products and services into the Christian marketplace to glorify Jesus and advance His Kingdom. Two new trends in this year’s show were fair trade, new products that benefit impoverished, abused and enslaved people, and the continual launching of quality Christian film designed to impact the culture through family-friendly entertainment with a message.

There were the usual Christian gift distributors displaying their products, publishers showcasing new book releases, author signings, and performances by established and upcoming Christian musicians. Matthew West introduced his new song Forgiveness, and the touching story that inspired him to write it. I also previewed a wonderful movie about inner healing and freedom from addiction called Home Run to be released in theaters in the spring of 2013.  Not to mention, it was fun meeting Jeremy Camp!

Some view “Christian retail” with caution arguing that the Gospel is “not for sale.”  But the Church is made of many parts, all fitted together perfectly doing its own special work under the direction of Christ (Ephesians 4:15-16).  Instead of preaching from the pulpit on Sunday mornings, these talented people use their God-given gifts to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the written word, music, and visual arts. Both pastors and artists alike are supported by those who benefit from their message (See 1 Corinthians 9:4-10). Most aren’t getting rich. In fact, most aren’t even making a living in their ministry call. The few who are blessed with abundance are seeding much of it back into the Kingdom. Together, we all make up the Body of Christ. What an honor and privilege to co-labor together with Him in His Kingdom work!