By-Bye Birdie

The storm had passed, but Noah didn’t rush. He waited—watching, listening, trusting. When the dove didn’t return, he knew: the season had changed, and it was time to move forward.

In this episode, Pastor Jason explores what it means to wait on God’s timing and how spiritual maturity is shown in our willingness to surrender control. Drawing from Noah’s quiet obedience, this sermon challenges us to release our grip, trust the Spirit’s leading, and be ready when God signals it’s time to step into something new.

If you’re feeling stuck between storm and breakthrough, this message is for you.

Linkoln shares his story on why he started coming to Ravenna Church of the Nazarene and shares why you should consider doing the same.

Ravenna Church of the Nazarene
530 Main Street, Ravenna, KY 40472

Transcript

BY-BYE BIRDIE

     Have you ever wondered why the sport is called “fishing” and not “catching”? It is because you can cast and cast, drown a tub of worms, and brave the mosquitoes without catching anything. Sometimes, all you catch is a soda box. Fishing is a waiting game.

     We do not like waiting. Especially when a storm of life ends or a period of struggle. Our hope is to move from the valley of the shadow of death to the green pastures. But God seems silent. No direction or sign is given to us. How are we supposed to know God is telling us to move forward?

     Noah, in our passage for today, is in such a season. Unlike us, he does not act impulsively. Instead, Noah waits, listens, and watches for a sign that the season of his life had shifted.

Genesis 8:6-12 (CEB)

6 After forty days, Noah opened the window of the ark that he had made. 7 He sent out a raven, and it flew back and forth until the waters over the entire earth had dried up. 8 Then he sent out a dove to see if the waters on all of the fertile land had subsided, 9 but the dove found no place to set its foot. It returned to him in the ark since waters still covered the entire earth. Noah stretched out his hand, took it, and brought it back into the ark. 10 He waited seven more days and sent the dove out from the ark again. 11 The dove came back to him in the evening, grasping a torn olive leaf in its beak. Then Noah knew that the waters were subsiding from the earth. 12 He waited seven more days and sent out the dove, but it didn’t come back to him again. 

This is the word of God

For the people of God

Thanks be to God

     Before we continue, let’s refresh ourselves on what is happening. The world had become filled with wickedness and violence due to humanity’s corruption. Grieved by the situation, the most loving thing God could do was put a stop to it. He sent the flood as judgment, but also as a merciful reset to make way for new life.

     God chose Noah to build an ark that would save himself, his family, and land-dwelling life. Noah built, even when it did not make sense. He endured life for forty days and forty nights, trapped with wildlife and his own family. All in faithfulness to God. But now the storm was over; however, the waiting was not.

     Noah opened a window, and it was not raining. Was it safe to leave the ark now? He did not know. There was no special revelation from God giving Noah the all clear. The only thing Noah knew was that it was not raining.

     Verse 7 says, “Noah sent out a raven, and it flew back and forth.” The raven was flying “back and forth”, with no real direction or place to rest. It was a sign for Noah that the world was not ready. The rain had stopped, but Noah still had to wait.

     After the raven does not return, Noah changes tactics in verses 8 and 9. The dove is used to help Noah discern whether it was time or not. Verse 9 says, “the dove found no place to set its foot.” Another way to translate this is “the dove found no resting place.” The rain had stopped. The raven disappeared. But the time was not yet.

     Noah waits seven more days, then sends the bird out again. In verse 11, the dove returns this time with an olive branch. The olive branch is a sign of peace, renewal, and new life. We use the phrase, “I extended an olive branch,” today because of this moment.

     Verse 11 continues, “Noah knew that the waters were subsiding from the earth.” Noah did not know this because God’s voice spoke to him, but because of the quiet sign of the olive branch. God spoke through a quiet confirmation. Even with this sign, the waiting for Noah was not over.

     “He waited seven more days and sent out the dove again, but this time it didn’t come back.” The dove did not come back this time. There was no voice from God. No lightning from the sky. Noah’s only sign was the dove not returning. But it was a sign that meant everything. The wait was over. Without a word, God was telling Noah his time in the ark was over.

     What does this teach us? Noah did not move out of impulse. He moved because he discerned God’s “now.” Waiting for Noah was not passive, it was patiently obedient, moving only as the Spirit revealed. 

Spiritual maturity means waiting on God’s timing instead of forcing our own. Full surrender allows us to move forward when He says the season has changed. When the dove, God’s Holy Spirit, moves, we follow. Each step into the unknown is a step into transformation at God’s pace.

It is no secret that, as a church, we have had a tough couple of years. But I have been clinging to a promise God gave me through one of you all. After a service when the Spirit moved several months ago, someone said to me, “This is the day that God turns this church around.” And from that point, I have been waiting. Not passively, waiting, but stepping as the Spirit has revealed. Even as the storm rages around us, there have been glimpses of his handiwork. People saved and baptized. Guests visiting. No loud voices from God or flashes in the sky, only steady steps drawing us after Him.

What change are you waiting on that God is saying “not yet”? Are you interpreting His silence as absence or God’s perfect timing? Trust that the Holy Spirit will signal the season change. Watch for the olive branch. Do not get ahead of God. Do not cling to comfort. Be like Noah, ready when the dove does not return. That is when you step out.

What have you been holding back? Where have you been waiting, but not watching? Can you trust that God will show you when the season changes?

Come forward if you are struggling to wait, or if you are sensing God calling you into a new season. Maybe we need to pray that together as a church as God leads us. Let our prayer be: “Lord, I release my control and wait on Your timing. Prepare us to step forward when You say go.”

When we wait on God’s timing, He prepares the way forward. Surrender makes us ready to step into a new season.