The timing of certain things in our
lives is important. I have mentioned previously that we need to be
in sync, otherwise things can turn out differently as it should
have been. Just look at a child anxiously waiting for his birthday.
You can turn all the clocks and calendars in the house to his
birthday, but if it is not his birthday, he won't receive any phone
calls or any presents, because he is out of sync with the rest of
the world. It is therefore important to wait out the time. I am
sure you have heard people say something to the effect of:
"The timing was perfect, if I had
children earlier I wouldn't have had the finances to look after
them." OR
"If I received the promotion
earlier, I wouldn't have been able to handle the conflicts as well
as I now can after gaining some more experience." Or
"If I met my husband earlier, we
wouldn't have clicked, as I still needed to sort out so many things
in my live."
I can go on and on. We need to
start trusting in God's timing, it always works out better than
what we would have thought.
Another reassuring fact is that God
is working through us while we are waiting. If we look at David
again, we can see the Lord teaching him many things while he was
waiting to be king. David had the chance to be in King Saul's
throne room quite often as he had to play the harp for him and
there he must have learned a lot about the duties of a king. While
on the run, he learned how to fight and conquer his enemies,
something a king had to know. He also gained a following of rugged
men while he was hiding from Saul and through leading these men, he
definitely learned how to lead, how to deal with conflict and how
to gain respect, something a king would need. He was a 'king in
training', and I am positive that he was a much better king than
what he would have been if he simply stayed with his father and
immediately became king.
Another person that had to wait was
Paul. After his conversion, he started preaching boldly in
Damascus. The Jewish leaders didn't like it and wanted to kill him.
He then fled to Jerusalem, but the new believers were afraid of
him, thinking that he was only pretending to be a believer. After
some convincing by Barnabas they believed him, but sent him away to
his hometown, Tarsus, when they heard of another plot to kill him.
And there he stayed for a number of years before Barnabas came to
fetch him and his whole ministry started. Now we do not know much
of the years he spent in Tarsus, but I was just thinking about it.
He could have been frustrated, not knowing what his future holds.
He could have felt that he had this wonderful 'education', and
special conversion and here he was doing nothing. Or he could have
embraced this time and learned from the Lord. He knew the Word very
well as he was a Pharisee, trained by Gamaliel, the finest
available, but I think that the Lord used this time to teach him
the Word through His Holy Spirit. I think the Lord wanted to teach
Him who Jesus truly was and to prepare him for the rough road
ahead. Paul didn't know then that he was going to become one of the
most famous people of all time, but I am convinced that that
waiting period prepared him for it.
Are you ready to learn from the
Lord while you are waiting? Are you ready to be prepared for your
future that awaits? Be encouraged and know that while you are
waiting, God is doing something wonderful within you. Believe it!
It is going to be worthwhile.
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew the right spirit within me. Help me to wait with
confidence of a bright future that awaits. Teach me O Lord, I am
prepared to listen. Amen