Lisa Barry: I wonder how many of you listening today are waiting for something? Maybe you?re waiting for God to reveal his perfect will for your life. Or it?s a relationship that needs repair. Does it seem that God is slow sometimes? Does it appear as though your pain must not be very important to Him? Well, if you feel that way, then today?s program just might be part of the answer you?re seeking. Because today, Elisabeth Elliot begins a brand new series called "Unavoidable Uncertainties." And she?ll talk about what our response should be toward those unpleasant times of waiting and the unexpected. Find out more as we begin this Monday edition of Gateway To Joy.

Elisabeth Elliot: "You are loved with an everlasting love." That?s what the Bible says. "And underneath are the everlasting arms." This is your friend Elisabeth Elliot, talking with you during this week on the subject of unavoidable uncertainty. One of the verses that God has brought to my mind over and over again throughout years of seeking to know Him and to obey Him, is Psalm 46:10--where God says, "Be still and know that I am God." "Be still and know that I am God" (Ps. 46:10).

Now why does God keep us so often it seems on tenterhooks. I had to confess I had to look up what tenterhooks means. I've used it all my life, but I discovered that it is a sharp-hooked nail used for fastening clothe on a tenter. Well of course, I had to find out what a tenter is. A machine or frame for stretching clothe. So it's just as if God puts us on some kind of a stretcher at times when we are very uncertain as to what's going to happen next or what God might want us to do next. And so it is an unavoidable uncertainty.

And of course God's purpose always is to teach us to trust Him and obey Him. You know the old Gospel song, "Trust and obey for there's no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey."

Janet Erskine Stuart, one of my spiritual tutors whom I never met, wrote this, "Nothing is more educating to our souls. It's a special exercise in faith, patience, conformity to God's will when we are kept in the balance of yes and no--an exercise in complete detachment." And the constant check of unavoidable uncertainty shows that it is one of God's special lessons.

So we will be glad God unfolds His plan to us only a day's journey at a time because it keeps us in closer touch and closer dependence on Him. Are you glad that God unfolds His plan only a day's journey at a time? Why does He do it? She says because it keeps us in closer touch and closer dependence on Him. That ought to be a good enough answer to our question as to why God keeps us on tenterhooks.

You know, my first husband was Jim Elliot and he was an amateur carpenter. He did a wonderful job of building a house for us in the jungle--a very civilized house that had a cement floor, board walls and an aluminum roof. We had the only stone fireplace in the eastern jungle of Ecuador as far as I know--a real fireplace with a chimney.

And he set about making furniture to fill the house. And he had some very fancy electrical equipment that his father had brought down to Ecuador for him. And so day after day Jim would be out there on the patio of our house working away with his electric saw. And I would find him doing all sorts of strange, weird things. And I'd find strange looking pieces of wood, and I would pick it up and say, "What in the world is that for?"

And he got so tired of my coming around and asking questions all the time as to what he was doing, what are you putting that there for, or why didn't you do this or that or the other thing. He just said to me one day, "Would you just get lost please."

Well of course I didn't want to just get lost. But then he said, "When it's finished, then you'll know the answer."

And I guess that's what God is saying to you and me when we are in a situation of unavoidable uncertainty. When it's finished, you'll understand. You'll know why I did this. So nothing is more educating to our souls. Nothing is a better exercise in faith, patience and conformity to God's will, than when we're kept in the balance of yes and no--an exercise in complete detachment.

Now I want to remind you of a wonderful story in Exodus 14. I've been reading Bible stories here and there lately. Let's have one from Exodus 14.

"The Lord said to Moses, 'Tell the Israelites to turn back and camp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea . . . They are to camp by the sea directly opposite Baal Zephon. Pharaoh will think the Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert. And I will harden Pharaoh's heart and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for Myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.'

"So the Israelites did this. When the king of Egypt had been told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed about them and said, 'What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and have lost their services.'

"So he had his chariot made ready, took his army with him. He took six hundred of the best chariots, along with all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over them. And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites who were marching out boldly. The Egyptians, all Pharaoh's horses and chariots, horsemen and troops pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon."

"As Pharoah approached, the Israelites looked up and there were the Egyptians marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, 'Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt. Didn't we say to you in Egypt, leave us alone. Let us serve the Egyptians. It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert.'

"Moses answered the people, 'Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you need only to be still.'

Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the Israelites to move on. Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground. I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them. And I will gain glory through Pharaoh and all his army through his chariots and his horsemen. The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I gain glory through Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen.'

"Then the angel of the Lord, who had been traveling in front of Israel's army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them, coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other. So neither went near the other all night long."

"Then Moses stretched out over the sea. And all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground with a wall of water on their right and on their left."

"The Egyptians pursued them, and all Pharaoh's horses and chariots and horsemen followed them into the sea. During the last watch of the night the Lord looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud at the Egyptian army and threw it into confusion. He made the wheels of their chariots come off so that they had difficulty driving. And the Egyptians said, 'Let's get away from the Israelites. The Lord is fighting for them against Egypt.'

"Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.' Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians were fleeing towards it, and the Lord swept them into the sea."

"The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen, the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived. But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. That day the Lord saved Israel from the hand of the Egyptians. And Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. And when the Israelites saw the great power the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in Him and in Moses, His servant."

Moses took God at His word, didn't he? And just think that all Moses was required to do was to stretch out his hand. What a feeble gesture it seems to be. And yet, his obedience to God made it possible for God to fulfill His plan. The Israelites, of course, were terrified. But the Lord said you need only be still.

What situation do you find yourself in today? Is it one of unavoidable uncertainty? Of course the Israelites were in a panic, and yet when they could look back and tell their children about that amazing and wonderful experience, how marvelously it proves the faithfulness of God. He's never late. He knows exactly what He's doing. And He has promised to fight for us. Don't worry just because your uncertainty is unavoidable.

Lisa Barry: And with that, I think we can all just sit back, take a deep breath and rest. We can have full assurance that God can and will work out the details of our problems, but at the time He knows what is best. This series is so practical because I don?t think there?s anyone who doesn?t become anxious over personal matters. And later in the week Elisabeth will be talking about discerning God?s will, enduring suffering and more on waiting. It?s a series you?re going to want to have. The title to ask for is "Unavoidable Uncertainties" and the cost is $5.00. You can send that amount along with your note to:

Gateway To Joy, Box 82500, Lincoln, Nebraska, 68501. That?s Gateway To Joy, Box 82500, Lincoln, Nebraska, 68501. Or call toll free 1-800-759-4JOY. That?s 1-800-759-4569. You can also find us on the Internet at gatewaytojoy.org. You can find today?s offers and much more.

Gateway To Joy is a listener-supported production of Back to the Bible and we?d love to hear from you today. Be sure and join us again tomorrow when Elisabeth talks about how to endure suffering. That's right here on Gateway To Joy.