THE LOST ART OF TARRY

Table of Contents

1. A Message for Pastor Leonard and the Church
2. The Desire for Power Encounters
3. The Historical Practice of Tarrying
4. The Azusa Street Revival and Relentless Prayer
5. Tarrying Is Relationship, Not Religious Work
6. Tarrying as Resting in God’s Presence
7. Intimacy Illustrated Through Marriage
8. Knowing God’s Heart Without Guesswork
9. Jesus’ Intimacy With the Father
10. Why the Modern Church Has Lost the Art of Tarrying
11. Tarrying Until Faith Rises
12. The Good Shepherd Knows His Sheep
13. Eternal Life Is Knowing God
14. Tarrying in Praise
15. Tarrying in the Word
16. Tarrying in Love
17. Tarrying With the Knowledge That You Are Fully Qualified
18. Tarrying in Full Assurance
19. How Long Are We Willing to Tarry?
20. Recovering the Lost Art of Tarrying

A Message for Pastor Leonard and the Church

Pastor Leonard begins by explaining that this message is not merely something he prepared for other people. It is a message for him personally. Although some ministers may approach preaching as delivering messages specifically intended for their congregations, most of the messages Pastor Leonard shares are first messages God is working into his own life.

He emphasizes that he is walking through this earthly life alongside everyone else. He is not presenting himself as someone removed from the struggles, growth, and spiritual journey of other believers. He and the people are walking together, being led by the Holy Spirit, confronting the enemies of darkness, and learning to live the kingdom life God intends for His children.

This shared journey is important to the message. Pastor Leonard is not simply instructing other believers to tarry while exempting himself. He recognizes that he, too, must recover this practice and grow in it. The message is therefore both personal and corporate: it is for Pastor Leonard, and it is for the Church.

The Desire for Power Encounters

Pastor Leonard explains that he and Pastor Lori increasingly desire to experience what he calls “power encounters.” They want the supernatural and miraculous works of God to become a visible and regular part of Christian ministry.

When Jesus ministered on the earth, He preached the kingdom of God. He also instructed His disciples to preach the kingdom. The preaching of the kingdom was accompanied by healing the sick, cleansing lepers, raising the dead, and casting out demons.

Matthew 10:7-8- “And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.”

These supernatural works were not presented as something separate from the message of the kingdom. They accompanied it. The miraculous and supernatural were connected with the proclamation of God’s kingdom.

Pastor Leonard observes that, to a large degree, the miraculous and supernatural seem to have escaped from the everyday lives and gatherings of many believers. Yet God still wants His children to live in the supernatural and experience His miraculous power.

Pastor Leonard and Pastor Lori desire to establish a meeting place where people can come expecting to receive their miracles and healings. They believe healing and restoration express God’s will and heart toward people. As the Holy Spirit leads them farther along this pathway, God has been revealing certain truths and practices to Pastor Leonard. The lost art of tarrying is one of those revelations.

The Historical Practice of Tarrying

Pastor Leonard introduces the historical meaning of tarrying by referring to the early Pentecostal movement in the United States. Early Pentecostal history contains many accounts of believers actively lingering, praying, worshipping, and waiting at altars. These believers tarried as they sought the baptism of the Holy Spirit and powerful moves of God’s Spirit. Their waiting was not passive or indifferent. They actively prayed and worshipped while remaining before God. This practice was derived from the instructions Jesus gave His disciples in Luke 24:49.

Luke 24:49- “And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.”

Pastor Leonard shares a personal confirmation he experienced while receiving this message. When he opened his Bible, it opened to the exact passage of Scripture that formed the foundation of the teaching. Considering how many pages and passages are in the Bible, he did not view this as a meaningless coincidence. He believed the Holy Spirit was leading him and confirming the message.

Jesus instructed the disciples to tarry in Jerusalem until they were endued, or clothed, with power from on high. The word “until” is significant. They were not told to wait for a predetermined number of minutes and then leave whether anything happened or not. They were to remain until the promise was manifested. Early seekers took this seriously. They gathered around wooden altars and remained there for hours, days, weeks, and sometimes even months. They cried out in prayer and worship until they experienced a manifestation of God.

The Azusa Street Revival and Relentless Prayer

Pastor Leonard points to the Pentecostal movement and the Azusa Street Revival, which took place in Los Angeles from 1906 through 1909 under the leadership of William J. Seymour. This foundational revival was marked by relentless prayer meetings. People did not treat prayer as a short preliminary activity before the “real” meeting began. Prayer and waiting in God’s presence were central to what occurred.

Historical research involving the revival’s publication, The Apostolic Faith, indicated that many people received the baptism in the Holy Spirit within approximately one week of seeking God daily. However, roughly 23 percent tarried longer. Some continued seeking for three weeks, while others remained committed for months.

Pastor Leonard uses this history to introduce the central question of the sermon: Have believers lost the art of tarrying? Earlier generations were willing to remain before God for as long as necessary. Their willingness to pray, worship, wait, and linger in His presence was connected with extraordinary manifestations of the Holy Spirit.

Tarrying Is Relationship, Not Religious Work

As Pastor Leonard reflected on tarrying, he began thinking about its importance in his own life. He is careful to clarify that tarrying is not a religious work performed to earn something from God.

Tarrying is about relationship.

It is a place where a believer’s relationship with God becomes solidified and cemented. Through tarrying, believers become aligned and brought into agreement with God’s heart, will, and purposes for their lives. Many believers are waiting to see miracles manifested in their lives. Pastor Leonard teaches that tarrying creates intimacy and nurtures a growing relationship with the heavenly Father and the Holy Spirit through Jesus Christ.

Tarrying is not an attempt to persuade an unwilling God to bless His children. It is time spent resting in His presence, learning His heart, and becoming increasingly conscious of His love, compassion, mercy, and goodness.

Tarrying as Resting in God’s Presence

Pastor Leonard returns to the words of Jesus:

Luke 24:49- “And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.”

He explains that the word translated “tarry” communicates the idea of taking a seat, sitting down, or settling into a place. It presents a picture of resting and becoming comfortable in God’s presence.

Tarrying is therefore not anxious striving. It is a place of rest and spiritual relaxation before God. It involves becoming conscious of God’s presence with us, His presence within us, and His presence all around us. The believer rests in God, rests in His presence, and remains before Him. The word “until” communicates continuance. It means continuing for as long as it takes.

Pastor Leonard encourages believers to get before God and become comfortable in a restful position before Him. In that place, they can enjoy God and allow Him to reveal more of Himself. He reveals His love, compassion, mercy, and goodness toward them.

As this relationship develops, believers begin to sense that they are drawing nearer to God. They become more intimate with Him. Tarrying brings knowledge, understanding, illumination, and enlightenment as believers grow increasingly familiar with God’s heart.

Intimacy Illustrated Through Marriage

Pastor Leonard illustrates this kind of intimacy by talking about his relationship with Pastor Lori. After all their years together, he deeply enjoys being with his wife. When she is not near him, he feels lonely and even depressed because he values her presence so much.

Their intimacy has grown to the point that they enjoy simply being in one another’s presence. Pastor Leonard compares this close marital relationship to what happens between believers and God through tarrying. Because he has spent so much intimate time with Lori, he knows her. He knows what she likes and enjoys. He knows which foods she loves. They can enter a restaurant, and he can order for her with confidence that she will be satisfied because he has learned her preferences.

He knows her favorite colors, the activities she enjoys, and the things that fill her “love tank.” He knows what brings her joy and happiness. Through the time they have spent together, he has come to understand her heart. He describes Lori as amazing, someone who would do anything for him. This knowing has grown out of their shared time, rest, presence, and commitment to one another. The relationship is reciprocal. Lori knows him as well. She knows what pushes his buttons, what excites him, what makes him happy, the foods he enjoys, and his favorite colors.

She knows he loves the ocean, walking on the beach, listening to the waves strike the shore, and watching seagulls fly. If someone wanted to understand what moves Pastor Leonard but could not ask him directly, that person could ask Lori because she knows him.

Pastor Leonard uses “tarrying” as another way to describe this kind of time together: remaining in one another’s presence, enjoying that presence, and committing to the relationship. It is not burdensome work for either of them. It springs from the character of Christ within them and from their love for one another.

Knowing God’s Heart Without Guesswork

Pastor Leonard asks listeners to imagine knowing God in the same intimate way that husbands and wives can know one another.

Those who have cultivated a close marriage know many things about their spouses without having to guess. They understand what their spouses like, need, seek, and enjoy. They know what moves and excites them. In a healthy relationship, this knowing is reciprocal.

Such a relationship grows through time spent resting and remaining in one another’s presence. Pastor Leonard explains that this is what God desires to develop with His children.

God wants believers to know His heart so intimately that there is no continual guesswork. They do not have to remain trapped in uncertainty, repeatedly wondering whether God loves them, whether He is good, or whether He desires to help them.

Through tarrying and intimacy, the relationship grows. Believers increasingly understand God’s character, will, and purposes. They learn to recognize His voice and become familiar with His ways.

Jesus’ Intimacy With the Father

Pastor Leonard points to Jesus as the ultimate example of intimacy with the Father. Jesus could say that He did only what He saw His Father doing.

John 5:19- “Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.”

Jesus also spoke what the Father taught Him.

John 8:28- “Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.”

Jesus could live this way because He spent time in prayer before the Father. He tarried for as long as necessary and cultivated such a close relationship that He knew what the Father was doing and saying. That intimacy was so complete that Jesus could tell His disciples that seeing Him was seeing the Father.

John 14:9- “Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?”

This is what tarrying produces: familiarity with God’s heart, clear spiritual perception, and freedom from constant uncertainty. Instead of always saying, “I do not know what the Lord is doing,” “I do not know what He is bringing about,” or “I do not know what He is trying to show me,” believers can grow in their ability to recognize His heart and direction.

Why the Modern Church Has Lost the Art of Tarrying

Pastor Leonard honestly reflects on his previous attitude toward church services. He was once the person who repeatedly looked at his watch to determine how much time remained.

If there was a clock on the wall, he would look at it. When the preacher began speaking, he might calculate how long the message would probably last based on whether that preacher normally spoke for twenty, twenty-five, or thirty minutes.

Although he was happy to attend church, greet friends, meet people, and worship the Lord, part of him was looking forward to getting out. He was not attending with the intention of tarrying.

Pastor Leonard observes that many modern church services are not designed for people to tarry. Schedules are carefully planned, and people often expect to leave at a particular time. He asks what would happen if someone came to church needing healing and both that person and the minister decided they would not leave the altar until they heard from God and received from Him.

How many believers are willing to do that? How many are willing to spend unhurried time alone in a bedroom or quiet place and remain before God for as long as necessary?

Pastor Leonard suggests that someone might even take a day away from work or use vacation time for the specific purpose of tarrying before God. Earlier believers who experienced the Pentecostal explosion and the events surrounding Azusa Street were willing to give sustained time to prayer and waiting. He believes many wonderful things could happen if the Church returned to sitting, resting, waiting, praying, and worshipping until believers heard from God.

Tarrying Until Faith Rises

Tarrying provides an opportunity to receive understanding and direction from God. As believers wait before Him, they can hear the instruction they need. When they hear from God, faith rises within them. That faith enables them to speak to the mountains standing in their way.

Romans 10:17- “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

Pastor Leonard connects hearing with faith. Believers do not need to manufacture faith through human effort. As their spiritual hearing becomes clearer and they perceive what God is saying, genuine faith arises. With that faith, they can command the mountains in their lives to move.

Mark 11:23- “For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.”

Pastor Leonard teaches that this kind of faith grows from intimacy. When believers know God’s heart, know what He knows, and understand what He desires, they can speak in agreement with Him. Mountains must move, obstacles must leave, and bodies must be healed.

The Good Shepherd Knows His Sheep

Pastor Leonard explains that tarrying builds intimacy by pointing to Jesus’ description of Himself as the Good Shepherd.

John 10:14- “I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.”

The word translated “know” communicates much more than possessing information about someone. It carries the ideas of learning to know, coming to know, perceiving, and feeling.

Jesus knows His sheep, and His sheep know Him. This speaks of an intimate relationship. It is not a relationship characterized by continual guesswork, confusion, or wondering.

Tarrying helps believers grow in this kind of personal knowing. They learn to recognize the Shepherd’s heart and become increasingly confident that they are known and loved by Him.

Eternal Life Is Knowing God

Pastor Leonard next refers to Jesus’ definition of eternal life.

John 17:3- “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”

Eternal life is not presented merely as existing forever. It includes knowing the only true God and Jesus Christ, whom He sent. To know God means to learn His heart, come to know Him personally, grow intimate with Him, and gain knowledge and perception of His character. This is what tarrying helps produce.

Believers must be willing to tarry and build intimacy with God. Through this relationship, they can know Him as He knows them and receive clearer direction concerning His will, the miraculous, and the supernatural.

Pastor Leonard asks whether believers are still willing to tarry or whether the art has been completely lost. He believes it must be reintroduced into Christian life. Believers need to return to resting before God and resting in His love.

Tarrying in Praise

Pastor Leonard offers several practical ways believers can tarry. The first is to tarry in praise. Praise sharpens spiritual hearing. As believers praise God and remain in His presence, they become more sensitive to what He is communicating.

Romans 10:17- “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

Pastor Leonard emphasizes that true God-given faith comes through hearing. Tarrying in praise helps believers become more attentive to God, and this sharpened hearing allows faith to arise. As believers grow intimate with God, they learn His heart and understand His purposes. When faith rises, they can speak in agreement with God. The mountains standing before them must move, and their bodies must respond to God’s healing power.

Mark 11:23- “For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.”

Praise is therefore not simply music used to fill time. It is a place of intimacy and spiritual hearing where believers become increasingly conscious of God and confident in His heart.

Tarrying in the Word

The second practical instruction is to tarry in the Word of God. Tarrying in the Word produces true understanding and direction.

Pastor Leonard refers to Paul’s prayer in the first chapter of Ephesians. The prayer concerns receiving wisdom and revelation and having the eyes of one’s understanding enlightened.

Ephesians 1:17-18- “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,”

Pastor Leonard describes this as God causing wisdom to spring up from within believers. God has already planted His life and wisdom within them. As they tarry in His Word, the eyes of their understanding become illuminated.

This illumination produces greater understanding and clearer direction. Instead of rushing through Scripture merely to complete a reading assignment, believers can remain with God in His Word, allowing the Holy Spirit to reveal its meaning and application.

Tarrying in Love

The third instruction is to tarry in love. Believers should remain in the knowledge that the Father loves them, the Son loves them, and the Holy Spirit loves them. They are invited to rest in God’s love while also allowing that love to flow through them toward others. Love produces confidence and boldness.

Pastor Leonard connects this confidence with the invitation in Hebrews to approach God’s throne boldly.

Hebrews 4:16- “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

Because believers are loved and have been brought into a relationship of grace, they do not have to approach God timidly as though He is reluctant to receive them. They can come boldly to the throne of grace, where they obtain mercy and find grace in their time of need. Pastor Leonard then points to the perfecting of love described in 1 John.

1 John 4:17- “Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.”

As believers tarry in God’s love, they become intimate with that love and increasingly confident in it. Perfected love gives them boldness to stand before God without fear of judgment.

The reason for this boldness is the extraordinary truth that as Jesus is, so are believers in this world. Pastor Leonard asks listeners to imagine truly believing that as Jesus is, so are they. This confidence develops as they tarry, rest in God’s love, and allow the reality of their identity in Christ to fill their hearts.

Tarrying With the Knowledge That You Are Fully Qualified

Pastor Leonard instructs believers to tarry with the knowledge that they are fully qualified before God.

As they rest in God’s love and grow in intimacy with Him, they should remember that God placed them in their position before Him. They are fully qualified to receive every blessing and promise that belongs to them in Christ. God’s promises are not uncertain. They are yes and amen in Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 1:20- “For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.”

Believers do not qualify themselves through religious performance. They have been justified and declared righteous through faith in Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:1- “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:”

Because believers have been justified by faith, they have peace with God. They do not have to tarry under the fear that God is angry with them or unwilling to receive them. They tarry from a position of peace, acceptance, righteousness, and relationship. Pastor Leonard also refers to Paul’s words in Colossians.

Colossians 1:12-13- “Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:”

God has made believers qualified to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered them from the power and domain of darkness and transferred them into the kingdom of His beloved Son. Pastor Leonard describes this truth as beautiful and amazing. Believers can rest before God, knowing that their standing is secure. They have been delivered, transferred, accepted, and qualified through Christ.

Tarrying in Full Assurance

Pastor Leonard next encourages believers to tarry in full assurance. The more believers tarry, the more they grow in understanding and intimacy with God. They rest before Him in love, praise, and His Word. As they do so, assurance begins to fill their souls, minds, and beliefs. They become increasingly certain of God’s character, love, promises, and willingness to work in their lives.

This is where the faith of God grows. It is the faith that can speak to mountains and command them to move.

Mark 11:23- “For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.”

This faith does not grow from frantic striving. It develops through tarrying: resting before God, hearing His voice, understanding His heart, and becoming fully persuaded of what He has said.

How Long Are We Willing to Tarry?

Pastor Leonard returns to the central challenge of the message. Tarrying has become a lost art, so believers must honestly examine their willingness to remain before God. How long are they willing to tarry before the Lord in prayer? How long are they willing to remain with His Word? How long are they prepared to praise Him without rushing to the next activity?

Pastor Leonard shares that he has a playlist containing approximately three or four hours of songs. He can play those songs repeatedly while he tarries in praise. During those times, intimacy with God has been built, and he has heard from Him. His example demonstrates that tarrying can involve intentionally creating an atmosphere of sustained praise and remaining there without feeling pressured to hurry.

Pastor Leonard also asks how long people are willing to remain at the altar. Will they continue looking at their watches and deciding that it is time to leave, or will they make room to remain in God’s presence?

Recovering the Lost Art of Tarrying

Pastor Leonard acknowledges that he does not fully know why tarrying became a lost art. However, he believes believers must ask themselves that question and deliberately find time to tarry again. Tarrying means waiting, sitting, resting, praying, praising, remaining in the Word, and becoming intimate with God. It is not a religious work designed to earn His favor. It is the enjoyment and development of a relationship that believers already possess through Jesus Christ.

Through tarrying, spiritual hearing becomes sharper, understanding increases, love produces boldness, and assurance fills the heart. Believers become more conscious that they have been justified, qualified, delivered from darkness, and transferred into the kingdom of God’s beloved Son.

God is seeking intimacy with His children. He wants believers to know His heart without continual guesswork. He desires for them to hear His direction clearly, grow in genuine faith, and experience the miraculous and supernatural life He intends for them. The question is not whether God desires intimacy with His children. The question is whether His children are willing to make time to remain in His presence for as long as necessary.

We hope this article blessed you and encouraged you to recover the lost art of tarrying. Please share this teaching with others so they may be inspired to rest in God’s presence, grow in intimacy with Him, and experience the power of knowing His heart.