Great promises that already apply

In my last post I shared what the Lord has laid upon my heart with regard to 2 Peter 1:3-4, and we will look today at the last part of that passage to complete the thought Peter is making.  It will make more sense if you read the first post though.

3 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. 4 And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.

Jesus is unlike anyone you or I have ever met.  He just is.  We can start with the fact that he is divine and all-knowing, which I'll explore with you in a later post.  However, he's so much different from any human relationship we have!  He knows everything about you, the good and the bad, the ups and the downs, the strengths and the weaknesses, the victories and the failures, the good thoughts and the very bad thoughts.  Nothing is hidden from him.  And even though he knows you in this way, he still wants relationship with you.  And nothing you can do in this life will ever make him lose interest or give up on you.  With humans this happens all the time.  With God, it just doesn't happen ever.

Somehow through Jesus's "glory and excellence," we receive the gift of promises he has given.  What does that mean exactly?  Let's look at some wording to understand.

The original text for "has given" is important.  It means that something has been bestowed on us.  We don't use that word often, but it means that there has been a great gift given to someone.  It also means that what was given was given as an honor to someone else.  This is more than me just giving you a pencil.  This would be like a wealthy person giving you a huge house just because they wanted to.  Whatever has been bestowed on you and I is a huge gift.  This same word was used in the book of Mark when Pilate gave Jesus's body to Joseph of Arimathea.

The second important word in verse 4 is "promises."  This is not an ordinary promise.  This is a promise that is made publically, as in it is being shouted over a loudspeaker or public address system.  Such a promise must be a big deal.  For example, I might promise to you that I'll come pick you up at a certain place in 20 minutes.  That isn't worthy of any great pronouncement to the world.  Nobody else but you would care.  This type of promise carries such weight that it is worthy of announcing to the world.

Peter's language communicates that the promises being made from Jesus are very great and precious.  Peter used this same descriptive language when describing Christ's blood (1 Peter 1:19) and a Christian's faith (1 Peter 2:7;  2 Peter 1:1).  The promise being described is important and valuable.

What then are these promises that Peter describes?  Well, two of them were stated in verse 3.  We have the promise of a new birth, the promise of God's protecting power (v 5), and the promise of the Spirit's power in our lives.  What can this mean for me in everyday life?

When we decide to cross the starting line of the marathon of Christianity, an important thing happens.  It is as though we have been born once again.  In practical terms that means that whatever person you were prior to crossing that starting line is dead.  That person is gone.  All of the horrible things that person said and did and thought are all gone.  They are in the past, and the door to the past is shut and locked.  We cannot travel that way again.  And since it is a new birth, you are made into a new person.  That process begins in that moment of first having faith in Jesus and it only grows from that point.  A new birth is exciting because it is a totally new person who has never lived before.  They have different characteristics and values and morals and thoughts and behaviors than the other person because they are entirely new.

Think of it in this silly way.  Most American adults have owned several vehicles.  Back when I went to college I had a 1993 Ford Taurus.  It got me around, it was comfortable, and it got good gas mileage.  I didn't really like the car though.  I wanted a truck, and because of my immaturity at the time I did everything I could do to rid myself of this Taurus and get a truck.  But that never happened.  I stuck with that car until it had 123,000 miles on it and could barely shift gears anymore.  A lot of stuff didn't work on it by that time and I was quite relieved when I went to trade it in for a much newer, nicer car.  I was glad that Taurus died.

The thought never crossed my mind at the time to keep the Taurus and rebuild it.  Could I have done that?  Sure!  I could have refurbished the engine or bought a new one.  I could have replaced the transmission and given it a new paint job.  I could have done all of the things necessary to make it "like new" again.  The reality, though, is that it wouldn't have been new.  It would still have been a 1993 Ford Taurus.  It would still have been in existence since it was built by Ford in 1992.

You see, God knows this about old and new.  That's why he doesn't take the old you and dress you up in better clothes and change a couple of things about you to make you the "new" you.  It wouldn't work.  There would still be old and new parts of you and you would never fully function in the capacity of new, no matter what was done.  That's why you and I, when we decide to cross that starting line of the marathon called Christianity, begin taking steps as an entirely new person.  The old is gone.  The old is in the rear view mirror and the image is getting smaller and smaller with time.  The new is where we are now and is up ahead.  That's the way God works in us.

I'm certain that some of you hold on to your past self, the old, dead you.  There are things in your life that you did or said that have caused deep regret.  There are things you did that you wish now you could take back.  The Apostle Paul would sympathize with you.  He had plenty in his past that he wished he could take back.  But he came to realize that Christ simply wanted him to look ahead to the relationship they had right now versus the relationship they didn't have in his past.  He describes it this way in Philippians 3:

12 I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. 13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it,[d] but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.

You see that Paul also refers to the Christian life as a race.

These promises from 2 Peter 1:3-5 tell us something important.  We have access to God everyday.  Since we have access everyday, his very divine nature can work through us everyday if we allow it.  We don't need to do anything different or special because those things have already been bestowed upon us.  They are already there, in the new you!

If you find that living out this kind of Christianity is hard, you are not alone!  It IS hard, and some days are harder than others.  That's why you and I must be in daily relationship with the Lord.  Only through that do we find the necessary surrender so he can work out these great promises in us.  Jesus himself even said that this race is a hard one.

Matthew 7:13-1413 “You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell[a] is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. 14 But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.

If Jesus said it would be hard, then it is going to be hard!  Count on it!  Pray about it!  But above all things, just don't give up.  The reward for running this hard marathon is that you know Jesus more personally and you see him working through your life in larger and larger ways.  And as you see that larger work he is doing, you only want more of it!  That is the life of beauty and significance that most of us really want, but oddly it comes from dying first.

So if you are not a follower of Jesus and you have a past, know that this new birth can be you.  You really can leave it all behind, and Jesus will help you to do that.

If you consider yourself a Christian but feel stuck, there is hope.  You already have everything you need to live a godly life.  And what you have is Jesus himself.  Spend time in prayer and in silence with him.  Put in the time to get to know him and to speak to him.  He will meet you in that moment, right where you are.

May God reveal himself more and more to each of you as you pursue a deeper relationship with him!

How to be godly: relationship first

When I was what I considered to be a new Christian in college, I experienced a pretty dramatic change in my lifestyle.  I went from being a man ruled by anger and bitterness to deeply desiring God in so many moments in life.  I began waking up every day and reading God's word, devouring every bit of it that I possibly could.  It was like I was reading it for the first time and day after day I learned new things about what the life of a Christian is supposed to be like.  

Like many new to the faith, I began thinking that much of this change that was supposed to be occurring in me would be based upon my own work.  If I read the Bible more, surely this would make God happier with me.  If I memorized scripture, I would gain his favor.  I developed this kind of mindset that I could work my way into Christianity.

While there is some work we can do to deepen our faith, a focus on that sort of thing by itself is wrong.  It elevates us in our own minds to being super-powerful.  In its worst form it can become an idol, making us think that we can truly do anything including gaining greater stature with God.  I think that's why so many of us know people who are churchgoers who don't actually behave as a Christian.  Sure, they attend church and may know what some scripture says, but they rely on themselves to apply it in their lives which leads to an eventual failure because they go in their own strength.  They never actually surrender themselves to this God that can take up residence inside of them and change them over time.  It's all about them.

If we are unable for long periods of time to be more godly, how can we actually become more"godly?"  How can our small measure of faith that we have in Jesus Christ turn into anything larger?  Are there actually next steps to faith?

Peter wrote some great words about it that I have copied below.

2 Peter 1:3-4- 3 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. 4 And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.

Immediately this passage turns our ideas of godliness on its head.  Peter openly states that we have "everything we need for a godly life."  We already have it.  If we already have it, it must have been given to us somehow and by someone.  The next sentence completes the thought.

We received this gift by coming to know Christ.  Now let's consider what this really means.  I believe American Christians may believe that this indicates that when we "accept Jesus into our hearts," this gift that Peter describes is immediately given.  That does have some element of truth but is far too simple of an explanation.  This is rooted in the misconception that "accepting Jesus" is like crossing the finish line of a race.  Once you have crossed it, you have gotten your way into Heaven and nothing else is required.  The trouble with that sort of thinking is that it is not supported anywhere in scripture.  Jesus himself spoke many things that contradict that idea as did all of the apostles who followed him.

Christianity is instead portrayed in the Bible as more of a marathon that is difficult and challenging and follows a path that few people actually follow.  What if "accepting Jesus" is instead the crossing of the starting line in a marathon?  What if in doing that you've only just begun the race and you still have 26.2 miles to go?  When you realize that, it changes everything about how you view your relationship with God.

When Peter says in the second sentence that we receive this "by coming to know him," he's making an important statement.  He is implying that coming to know Jesus is a process instead of an event.

Think of it this way.  Imagine the person on this earth that you are closest to.  It may be a best friend or your spouse or significant other, a brother or sister.  When you first met that person did you truly know them?  Did you know everything about them at that moment?  Did you know exactly how they think and suddenly have the ability to complete their sentences for them?  Did you know at that moment everything they like or don't like?  Did you know their past and their dreams for the future?  Of course not.  That kind of knowledge takes time to develop, and it is developed by spending time with them and talking to them and listening to them.  Even after 22 years of marriage, I'm still learning new things about Amanda!

If that's true in your everyday life, why would it be any different with Jesus?  You prayed a prayer in church one day and you suddenly know everything about Jesus and how he thinks and how he interacts with people?  No, it just doesn't happen that way.  When you invited Jesus into your heart to stay, you in effect have just said the initial "hello" to him.  It's like shaking hands and introducing yourself to someone for the first time.  That was just the initial encounter and there is so much that remains to be seen in your life.  His purpose for you is so much more grand than you can even imagine!

How, then, do we "come to know him?"  It takes time!  Lots of time.  In my life it began with devouring scripture and thinking on it.  Later it came with studying in greater depth what a passage meant.  Still later it came with promptings Jesus put into my life and my decision in that moment to obey or to not obey.  And it continues to this day as I go through day to day life, the high highs and the deep lows that come from obeying (or not obeying) Jesus everyday.  With each instance, I gain a little more insight into what he wants for me.  I learn a little more about his character as he speaks to me, by looking at the things he speaks to me about through scripture, and also by his moments of silence.

Peter goes further at the end of verse 3.  He says that as we get to know Jesus, his call comes by "means of his marvelous glory and excellence."  We read in scripture that Jesus is God's son, that he is divine, and that he is God in the flesh.  As we read about his life on earth we see a picture of his glory and excellence through his love and caring for the worst of sinners and through his everyday obedience.  He never sinned!  Not once!  

But Peter's statement about us "coming to know him" takes it so much further than that.  As we learn to hear Jesus speaking to us through daily Bible reading, through promptings in our brain, and through others speaking to us, we begin to get a glimpse of how incredible he truly is!  He sees everything, intimately knows us and what we are going through, sees our highs and lows, our obedience and our disobedience, and he still loves us and interacts with us.  This is attractive to me because it is unlike any other relationship I have in my life!

Like you, I have many relationships with many different people.  Some are true friends and know what's happening in my everyday life.  They are the ones who know how to pray for me and my family, and they are few.  Others are people I like but I don't speak to on a regular basis.  Still others are colleagues, and we may talk when one of us needs something but not otherwise.  Even when it comes to my closest friends, though, there are things that I can do to cause severe damage to the relationship due to my own behavior and choices!  Some of those things could even damage the relationship beyond repair!  It just isn't that way with Jesus though.  Even though he has had countless reasons to abandon me, he never has.  And he never will.  Someone like that is unique, and it makes me want to know them more.

What you discover over time is that when you begin to learn more about Jesus, more of his character begins to shine through you in ways that you just don't expect and never intended.  Your desires change from material things to just desiring more time with him.  And as you spend more of that time with him, he continues to poke holes in you and create cracks in your old self to where he shines out of you to a greater degree.  And then it all becomes visible to others.  For me, that's a large reason why I write this blog!  It helps me to consider at a deeper level what Christ is speaking into my life.  Who really cares if anyone reads it!

The point Peter is making is that we won't become more like Jesus on our own.  Trust me, I have tried.  Instead, Peter is saying that the power to do that comes from Jesus himself!  And it is given in greater and greater measure as we spend more and more time with him.  This just comes through everyday experiences with him, through reading scripture, prayer, "chance" encounters in everyday life whether in your community or at a local store or shop or at work.  Jesus is in all of those things!  In those moments we can either see them as they are, God's interaction in our life, or we can just see them as random encounters.  One leads closer to Jesus;  the other does not.

You may find after reading this that you don't know Jesus like I'm describing.  You thought you had crossed the finish line a while back when you "accepted Christ," but you just haven't seen anything since then.  The relationship you thought you might have had seems like stale religion.  You look at others who talk about Jesus with excitement and you wonder why you don't feel that same way, so you begin to feel that's unique to some Christians.  But it isn't unique.  It's available to you too.  

If you find yourself in that spot today, I encourage you to go put away all of your electronic devices and just start reading in the book of Matthew.  Read as much or as little as you would like, but stop periodically to see what it is telling you about Jesus.  Pay attention to the questions it raises in your heart and seek some answers from a good Bible commentary or from a friend who you think can help you.  Above all things, spend some time in prayer!  As I have said before, sometimes just sitting in silence before the Lord is incredibly impactful!  In this manner at times you may see something he will lay on your heart.  It takes time, but he has all of the time in the world.  And if it takes more of your time than you would have chosen, is that really a bad thing if in the end you begin your departure from the starting line and begin really heading down the path?

We will continue unpacking this passage in my next post.

Faith Forces a Decision

Why did he show up?  What was it that made the Apostle Peter show up on the night when Jesus was first put on trial?  He had just completed about 3 years with Jesus, heard the teachings, shown flashes that he understood what Jesus was there to do, and seemed to be on track in his faith.  He had eaten a nice meal with the Savior and was told bluntly at that time that he would fall away and deny that he knew Jesus.  He had just spent the night with Jesus, dozing off repeatedly while Jesus stayed up all night praying fervently about the next few hours.

Yet he still showed up after Jesus's arrest.  The Bible says that he even followed behind the procession to the high priest's house that night at a distance.  He wouldn't get close to his mentor, yet he couldn't break away either.  Later he was there in a courtyard sitting by a fire as Jesus met with the first group of his accusers.  They accused, taunted, and mocked Jesus, and all the while Peter listened in as this was going on.  I would imagine he was nervous, perhaps too nervous to get closer to the action and too nervous to leave.

And in that moment Peter was unfortunate to discover what Jesus had really come to do.  During that cold night, he began to see that Jesus's purpose in that moment was to force Peter to decide which way he would go, whether the way of the world or by the Way.  Jesus always, eventually, forces us all to make that decision.  During his several hours of waiting by the fire, it is possible some of Jesus's words flashed across his memory.

 Luke 22:31-34 (NLT)

³¹ “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat. ³² But I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen your brothers.”

³³ Peter said, “Lord, I am ready to go to prison with you, and even to die with you.”
³⁴ But Jesus said, “Peter, let me tell you something. Before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny three times that you even know me.”

The point is, at some point all of us have to decide which side we are on.  And our decision will be tested.  

Saying that we follow Jesus is one thing.  

Following Him with our life is something entirely different.

So as Peter is sitting by the fire, he is approached 3 times by people who recognize him.  The first recognized Peter after the fire is lit, and Peter denies knowing Jesus.  This must have only heightened Peter's anxiety.  He probably wondered if, in admitting that he knew Jesus, he would be put on trial as well.  Yet something made him stay there by the fire.  I wonder if he was still attempting to have the best of both worlds:  the benefits of knowing Jesus with none of the pain.

About an hour later, someone else approached and recognized Peter, stating again that he "must be one of them!"  Yet again Peter denied knowing Jesus.  Peter then had an hour to think about that.  It must have been absolute torment to think about what he had just said, twice!  Remember, Jesus himself had looked Peter in the eye and said that this would happen.  I'm certain he remembered that prediction.

And finally, about an hour later someone around the fire commented that Peter "must be one of them" because he was Galilean just like the others.  Impulsive Peter then loudly proclaimed that he didn't know what the guy was talking about.

A rooster crowed, and Peter's world turned upside down.

Then Jesus, in the midst of being accused by the crowd, turned and locked eyes with Peter.  That look must have been one of the most terrible looks in all of history.  I don't believe it was a look of anger or hate since that wasn't Jesus's way.  Instead, it was the knowing look of one who has been betrayed and knew it was coming.

The point is this:  to be a follower of Jesus requires your life.  In a spiritual sense, you and I are to die to ourselves and be reborn as a new person.  That happens with the decision to follow.  But many Americans stop at this stage as though they have crossed the finish line of some race.  They think that a decision to allow Jesus in their life is it, and that they can go on living a life of comfort.  But Jesus never promised that sort of thing to us.  In fact, here's what He said about Himself:

 Luke 12:50-52 New Living Translation (NLT)
⁵⁰ I have a terrible baptism of suffering ahead of me, and I am under a heavy burden until it is accomplished. ⁵¹ Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I have come to divide people against each other! ⁵² From now on families will be split apart, three in favor of me, and two against—or two in favor and three against.

To divide people against each other means that all of us face a very real choice.  We will either follow Jesus with our lives or we won't.  I've seen this in a very real sense in talking to people about Jesus.  Simply mentioning His name generally elicits one of two reactions.  Either the person is interested and peaceful, or they get angry at the mention of His name.  Personally, the interactions I have seen fit into one of those categories.  There hasn't been an in-between.

Attending church does not necessarily indicate that you have fallen on one side or the other, either.   
Each Saturday and Sunday, lots of people in the Houston area go to church.  For many, it fulfills a mental checkoff on a list that they did it and have done God a favor in doing so, or it is part of the local culture to attend church.  Many of these may think that they've made a decision for Jesus,  yet there isn't life change to indicate that that decision was real.  They live and talk one way on Sunday (or whatever day they attend church), and a completely different way on every other day of the week.

When we lived in the Northwest, the majority don't go to church but for maybe 1-2 times for year.  They claim to believe, yet they don't regularly pray, don't know what the Bible says, and can't point to anything that has changed in their lives as a result of knowing the Lord.  Thinking of this in terms of earthly relationships, that is like getting married and then never spending time with your spouse.  Or, it is like saying someone is your best friend but then never talking to them or spending time with them.  How can you say you have a relationship with Jesus if you never spend regular time with Him?

Peter had a tough choice to make that evening, and he chose incorrectly.  He tried to make a happy medium only to discover that a happy medium in following the Lord does not exist.  You are either all in, or you are not.  

I know when Peter fled the fire pit area that he was grieved by the decision he had made.  In fact, vs 62 says that Peter was "weeping bitterly" as he walked away.  That might have been the most difficult night of his entire life.  In his mind it was over.  The Lord was right in what He had said about Peter betraying Him.  Peter wasn't as strong as he thought he was.  What now?  What did this mean for him?

Peter did what most of us would have done at this point, making the pragmatic decision to return to his former line of work.  Jesus was dead, right?  He had correctly predicted Peter's denial.  What else was there?  So we find Peter back in his fishing boat, exactly where he started when the Lord found him originally.

John 21 recounts the sweet reunion between Peter and Jesus, where Jesus forgave and restored Peter in the company of 6 other disciples.  Peter's life was never the same from that moment on.  In fact, if you read the book of Acts there are times where he seems like a different guy altogether.  He is powerful in speech, faces opposition fearlessly, and proclaims the most important things Jesus taught with certainty.  He had betrayed the Savior to his face and been forgiven for it, and was on a mission in the world as a result.

As it was with Peter, so it should be with us.  If and when we decide to follow Jesus, things will be different.  We will think differently, look at the world differently, and behave differently.  Sin is rooted up and rooted out, friendships we maintain might look different or change altogether, and our speech may change as we talk about different things than we used to.  To be reborn is no small thing.  In being reborn we are being remade.  The road we used to follow is closed.  A new path has opened, and we can only travel on one road or the other one. 

I encourage you to examine your life closely.  Is there evidence that you have faith in Jesus Christ?  What is that evidence?  And remember, this evidence you mention should be something others can see, so we are not talking about ideas floating through your head that nobody but you can see.  We are talking instead about outward, visible evidence.  Jesus said a tree is known by the fruit that is produced.  He also said that the words you speak indicate what is in your heart.  Do you know him, or did you just pray a prayer and nothing else changed?

Jesus comes into our lives not to make us nice people, but to make us new.  A decision is required.  Will you allow Him to do that?  Will you allow Him to tear you down and rebuild you in His image.  That is what is required, and you and I should not take that decision lightly.

Faith in Waiting

Our current hurtle related to our move to Everett is in waiting to sell the house.  It has been on the market for 2 weeks now, but we haven't had anyone look at it in a week.  This has been discouraging to us for a variety of reasons, but primarily because we are looking toward what is coming.  We have a house picked out in Everett which also still hasn't sold.  The owners will not do a contract with us as long as our current house hasn't sold, so we wait.  We also are without options in moving forward without selling this house since we don't have enough money to put down on a purchase now.  Essentially, we are boxed in and believe the Lord is leading us down a very specific path that only He can orchestrate.  We are praying that the Lord will continue to reserve that house for us and that He will send the right buyer at the right time. 

The Lord has been reminding us about what it means to have faith.  Hebrews 11:1 says:   

Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.

In thinking about people in the Bible who had to wait, I see many:

• Abram was told that he would have a child and that his decendents would be "as numerous as the stars in the sky."  Yet Abraham waited for many years before his wife was able to have a child for him. 
• Noah was told to build an ark because a flood was coming.  The ark took him 100 years to build and when he finished it, the flood came.  He likely endured a lot of doubt over those 100 years.
• The Israelites had to wait before taking the city of Jericho.  They had to march around the city for 6 days, and on the 7th day they had to march 7 times and blow trumpets and shout at the end.  Only then did the walls come down.
• David was crowned king by the Lord, but had to wait for years and years in exile, even living in caves and in towns occupied by the enemies of Israel.  Although he was given numerous opportunities to kill king Saul, whom the Lord had rejected, he chose instead to wait on the Lord's provision.
• Joseph was shown that he would be a great leader and that his family would be subservient to him.  However he was soon sold into slavery by his brothers.  After working his way out of slavery he had a position of status in the house of his master, only to be falsely accused of trying to take advantage of his master's wife.  He was thrown into prison and stayed there for several years.  He was only made second in command of Egypt after a 13 year wait.
• Moses waited in the desert tending sheep for 40 years prior to being called to assist in setting his people free from slavery in Egypt.
• Paul met Jesus on the road to Damascus as he was pursuing Christians so that he could throw them in prison.  He was struck blind, told to go into Damascus, and wait.  He waited 3 days in his blindness before the Lord sent a messenger to free him from it.
• The disciples had to wait 3 days to see Jesus resurrected from the dead.  Although He had told them He would die and be raised to life, they had to experience a wait prior to that happening.

There are literally too many examples of waiting in the scriptures to list them all here.  Yet a pattern emerges:  God calls the person, gives them some information, and then somewhere in there they have to wait on Him to clear the path for them.  In each case, God received the glory from it because He himself did it and the person did not.   Waiting is normal, but it is not easy.

Now we have to confront the issue of faith. 

If you have little faith, little will happen.

• Matthew 13- When visiting his hometown, Jesus noted that the people there did not believe he was the Messiah.  As a result, "he only did a few miracles there because of their unbelief." 
• Matthew 17- Jesus' own disciples were unable to cast out a demon.  Jesus noted their lack of faith.
• James 2- 
  
  ¹⁴ What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? ¹⁵ Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, ¹⁶ and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?
  ¹⁷ So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.

If you have much faith, much will happen. 

• Matthew 9- Jesus healed a woman who had been dealing with a physical illness for many years.  He commented that "her faith had made her well."
• Matthew 15- The faith of a Gentile woman caused Jesus to cast a demon out of her daughter.
• Mark 10- Jesus heals a blind man, commenting that "his faith had made him well."
• Luke 7- A Roman centurion's servant was healed from a distance by Jesus.  Jesus commented that he "had not seen faith like this in all of Israel."

The Lord has an extensive track record of giving us some details to get us moving and then making us wait on something.  The wait develops the faith, because "faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen."  You have no evidence.  There appears to be no progress being made.  And yet our Lord is working behind the scenes on our behalf, only asking that we wait on Him and put our very hope in Him.  At this point, your actions matter.  Will you work yourself to death trying to make things happen on your own?  That didn't work for Abram, who conceived a child with his wife's servant during his wait, even though the Lord had made it clear that his wife would have the child.  Or alternatively, will you wait, pray, and hope? 

May the Lord receive glory for what He does in making our move happen.  While we periodically struggle with discouragement and impatience, He has also set things up to where only He can deliver us through this storm.  He is a great God.