Sisters 2017 Event with Amy Groeschel - Life.Church

Waiting Well with a Heart of Hope

Scripture References

Primary text

• Romans 8:24-25
• Romans 8:6

Other references

• Isaiah 26:3
• Proverbs 13:12
• Acts 28:30-31
• 2 Corinthians 4:17

Overview

Hope is not wishful thinking; it is the steady confidence that God is working even when we cannot yet see the result. Using Romans 8 as the anchor, the message calls us to cultivate “a heart of hope” by learning to wait well. Waiting is hard, but in the Spirit it becomes a place of formation, daily trust, mutual encouragement, and eternal perspective.

Main Points

The Struggle of Waiting

• We long for visible progress and instant answers, yet Paul reminds us that “hope that is seen is no hope at all.”
• Everyday irritations (traffic, long restaurant lines) expose our impatience, hinting at a deeper issue: the desire to play God and control outcomes.

• Illustration: On Valentine’s Day, after skipping four fully-booked restaurants, the speaker and her husband finally ended up at Taco Bell—proof of how badly impatience can derail plans.

1. Wait with the Mind of the Spirit

• Romans 8:6 contrasts a flesh-focused mind (death) with a Spirit-focused mind (life and peace).
• Choosing Spirit thoughts means actively leaning into truth—magnifying God’s character, promises, and presence.

• Story: When her daughter Mandy’s post-viral illness stretched into months with alarming test results, the speaker’s hope crashed. Re-anchoring in Romans 8:6 restored supernatural peace.
• Key question: Which way are your thoughts leaning—toward anxious flesh or toward the Spirit’s life and peace?

“What you think about is what you magnify.”

2. Wait One Day at a Time

• Hope is for today; it doesn’t have an expiration date.
• Jesus gives grace for the present moment, not for imagined tomorrows.
• Live, pray, rejoice, and obey in the 24 hours you actually have.

3. Give and Receive Daily Encouragement

• Hebrews urges us to “encourage one another daily” so hearts won’t grow hard or deceived.
• Hope carriers offer— and accept—strength through Scripture, Spirit promptings, and honest conversations.

• Story: Two mothers of prodigal sons left a ministry event discouraged. A brief Spirit-prompted conversation reignited their faith and birthed a practical idea one mom knew “was from the Father.”

4. Recognize the Weight in the Wait

• God assigns purpose to every delay; nothing, including chains, can hinder His work.
• Paul wrote several epistles and witnessed to Caesar while imprisoned (Acts 28:30-31).
• Your storm does not negate Christ’s power; His strength is perfected in weakness.

“Hope doesn’t expire.”

• Song reference: Hillsong Worship lyric—“While I’m waiting, I’m not waiting; I know heaven lives in me”—captures the truth that Christ within means we are never stuck.

Key Truths

• Hope thrives when the mind is set on the Spirit, not on circumstances.
• Daily dependence prevents tomorrow’s worries from draining today’s strength.
• Encouragement is a two-way conduit; giving it often refreshes the giver as much as the receiver.
• Delays are not wasted time; they are divine classrooms and mission fields.
• Our ultimate hope is eternal—rooted in Jesus, not in any earthly outcome.

Response

• Lean your thoughts toward the Spirit every time anxiety surfaces.
• Practice single-day faith: pray, obey, and rejoice in what you have today.
• Speak life to someone else’s waiting; send a message, pray aloud, or share Scripture.
• Look for God’s assignments inside your delay—who can you serve, what can you learn?
• Fix your eyes on the unseen, eternal glory that outweighs present troubles.

Closing

Waiting is inevitable, but discouragement is optional when Christ lives in us. By setting our minds on the Spirit, walking day by day, exchanging constant encouragement, and valuing the refining process, we can “wait well” and radiate unshakable hope.

“There is weight in the wait.”

Prayer

The speaker thanked God for His goodness, asked forgiveness for flesh-focused thinking, and requested fresh empowerment for every woman to lean into truth, trust Him fully, and wait well through the Holy Spirit’s strength.