Hurry up! Have these words ever driven your life? Many parents say it quite often every morning at home for getting their children ready for school. I often find myself hurrying from one place to the next - always with my eye on the clock – sometimes only to end up behind an old couple leisurely driving 20 miles an hour on a single lane street, and find myself murmuring loudly “Come on, hurry up!”, but more than once I thanked them for saving me from getting ticketed by the police who was waiting at the very next corner of that street.
We’re living in a fast paced world. The world desires instant response; fast food restaurant, speedy oil change, instant coffee, and etc. Nowadays with ever growing internet access such as instant messaging, texting, Facebook, and others the world is ever so close to each other. Information is flowing at lightning speed.
But on the contrary, there are also drawbacks that come with this fast paced lifestyle, and one that really stands out is a lack of patience. People are definitely becoming less patient these days. Most of us don’t have much trouble getting ready to meet the urgent needs of life. But, how many of us are good at waiting?
We often try to look for a short cut in order to get things done quicker. We, even as believers, get frustrated unless we are constantly moving ahead, and sometimes we try to compromise the way we do God’s ministry for the sake of getting things done. We just don’t want to wait.
Speaking of being in a hurry, the Israelites felt the same way after they came out of Egypt. There was no doubt the Israelites wanted to march right into Canaan as quickly as possible. They just experienced incredible power and the wonders of God that devastated the Egyptians, and they walked right through the Red Sea as God parted the sea. They wanted to go all the way. Their confidence level was at its highest! But God wanted them to go slowly. Why? God wanted to teach them that there were other more important things that they needed to learn than just quickly conquering the Promised Land.
You have probably had experiences when God was being silent on your prayer for a lengthy time. You wonder whether God has heard your prayer, and didn’t understand what was going on. Where are you God? Well… God may have wanted you to learn to wait on the Lord and be patient. Why? God may have wanted to teach you there were more important things that you needed to know.
James 5:7-8 says, “Be patient, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. See how farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm.” God wants you to know who is in control. God is the one who makes the rain come. God wants to get rid of your self-reliance. You can’t make rain come. Also, God wants to increase your confidence and faith through more discipline and training, and it takes time. Your confidence and faith cannot grow overnight. Also, God doesn’t want anyone to be left behind. If you go to too fast, not everyone can keep up with you.
God often remains silent because He wants to usher you into a new experience with Him which you have never previously experienced in your life. Do you really want to experience God’s presence in your life? Then, learning to wait on the Lord and being patient is a must. God knows you the best, and He knows exactly what, when and how things need to be done for your life.
From Pastor Neil’s Heart
July 13, 2014