Pastor Don Sheree Wilkerson teaches that waiting on God is not a temporary hardship to endure but the very context in which he forms and transforms his people. Drawing on Isaiah 40:31 and Romans 12, she uses the image of slow-burning incense to show that surrender in the waiting releases a fragrance of Christ that touches others in ways a momentary blaze cannot. Her own eight-year journey through infertility becomes a testimony that God meets people in the wait itself, not only in the answered prayer on the other side.
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“One of the most remarkable gifts on display in this sermon is Don Sheree's ability to take an everyday experience, the burning of incense, the smell of a rental car, a childhood summer goals list, and elevate it into profound theological insight.”
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Unlock with your sermon →“Most of us treat waiting like a problem to solve, something to push through, endure, and escape as fast as possible. We grit our teeth, count the days, and hope the season ends soon.”
Read all 5 days of the devotional →“heree said something that might be hard to hear: "We don't get everything we pray for on this side of eternity." She asked, "What if it never happens, that thing you're praying so earnestly for?" How do you respond to that question honestly? How”
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Unlock with your sermon →“How long did Don Sheree walk through infertility before God answered, and at what age did the journey begin?”
Take the sermon quiz →“Waiting on God is not a detour from spiritual growth, it is the path of it, because surrender in the wait releases a fragrance in our lives that no amount of striving can produce.”
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Unlock with your sermon →“Isaiah 40 marks a dramatic shift in the book. Chapters 1-39 are dominated by oracles of judgment against Judah and the nations. Chapter 40 opens with the famous "Comfort, comfort my people" (v.”
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Unlock with your sermon →“I want to ask you something honest: What are you waiting for right now? Maybe it's healing. Maybe it's a relationship to be restored. Maybe it's an open door you've been praying about for longer than you want to admit.”
Read the pastor's blog post →“There's something most of us would rather not admit: we are terrible at waiting. We wait for the diagnosis to clear. We wait for the relationship to heal.”
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Unlock with your sermon →“When you surrender your life to Christ, all things have passed away. All old fragrances have passed away. Behold, all things are new.”
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Unlock with your sermon →This sermon teaches that waiting is not a season to endure but a way of life, an invitation to experience God's presence. Surrender your situation to God daily, stay planted in community, and trust that he is actively forming you in the waiting, even when nothing seems to be happening.
Isaiah 40:31 promises that those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength, mount up like eagles, run without growing weary, and walk without fainting. The sermon emphasizes this is not passive endurance but active surrender, placing your life on the altar and letting God transform you from the inside out.
The sermon says you are not the fire, God is. When you feel burned out, return to the altar and surrender again. God as the all-consuming fire will renew your mind, heal your heart, and reignite your faith. You don't have to generate the flame; you just have to come back to him.
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