Used a new sermon illustration this past Wednesday.
I was trying to work with a new way to help youth understand what it meant to wait on God.
Like any normal person it's difficult to wrap your mind around the concept that waiting on God doesn't mean sitting around doing nothing but praying and hoping.

In an effort to point on what God is always doing we narrowed God's constant desire down to 3 things.

1. God is always proclaiming His glory

2. God is always looking out for His people's best interest.

3. God is always looking to connect with people through His son Jesus.

But what does this have to do with waiting on God? Well it's simple. When you and I claim we don't know what God wants us to do in a situation we really only to look at the three things He's always doing to gain some insight.

It's almost like God is sitting a big table in a restaurant. God makes it clear what He always wants. His Holy Spirit is working in the kitchen cooking up opportunities, but its up to us to pick up those opportunities and bring them to the father. See waiting on God doesn't mean sitting around it means it's time to be a waiter for Him.

And doesn't God deserve our best platter to bring it to Him? Think of the platter is the best of your ability, your best try, etc. You also never know what the trip from the kitchen to the God's table is going to be like though. The floor might be slippery and you'll have to change your path. You might have other customers demanding your attentions and efforts. And who knows, there might be want to sneak away some of that food for yourself. A guy's gotta eat right?

Something amazing though, is that when we do bring God's order to the table, He doesn't just keep it all for himself. Can you imagine seeing the best customer in the place offering some of his meal to the waiter? Heck no! But here's God offering it to us "Here, you can be satisfied to, here eat be nourished and energized, here be blessed by this meal too and don't worry about helping out with the check, my son's already paid the bill."

Honestly, I wouldn't have any problem waiting on a guy who always shares his meals with me.
And yet sometimes we bring God a happy meal instead of the full three course meal He ordered.
What do you think would happen to the waiter who never brings the full course to the best customer? He wouldn't get a good tip for one thing, but he would also never have the chance to be satisfied by that awesome food. The waiter would really be robbing himself too.

So here's the holy Spirit preparing the food, all we have to do is carry it to the table on our best platter, bring the best quality food to the Father as our spiritual act of worship, and realize that the bill has already been paid by the Son.

- tom