Timing is Everything!!

Timing is Everything!!

Hmmm . . . does God have a timing problem? It was not long ago that I was writing about the faithfulness and trustworthiness of God. It was kind of simple to see how answered prayer, feeling his presence, fulfilled prophecies and God’s promises all bolster our faith in God, helping us to believe in the light of day, and most of the time even in the dark of night, that God is indeed trustworthy. We say it, we believe it, but … then there is the timing problem. Seems like God just can’t get it right sometimes!

Have you ever noticed it is awfully difficult to trust God’s timing? Sure, you know he hears your prayers, you trust that… but, waiting for results is so difficult. You are only human after all, and really, why haven’t your prayers been answered yet?! You know that God loves your son, you trust he hears your faithful prayers, and yet he is still far from God. What is God waiting for?

‘O Jesus, if only you had been here, if you had come right away, our brother would not have died!’ O Jesus ... If only. Remember the story of Jesus’ friend Lazarus who was sick? His sisters, Mary and Martha, sent for Jesus to come and heal him, but Jesus tarried—intentionally, and he died. The story is found in John’s gospel, chapter eleven. Click to read: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+11.1-44&versio... If only. If only Jesus had been there, Lazarus would not have died! What was wrong with Jesus and his timing? Jesus was not slow, and the writer John clearly stipulates that Jesus loved Mary, Martha, and Lazarus, so he was not being mean-spirited, yet he waited until Lazarus died! Jesus waited because he had a bigger plan . . . we know that from this side of things—we know how the story ends, right?

Friends, may I encourage you with this--
God is in control, and his timing is always perfect.
He wants you and I to trust him. Period. No ‘if onlys’. As I look closely again at this story of two sisters, a dead brother, and their Lord, I glean truths to which we ought cling. God is trustworthy, and he wants us to trust him, as he never loses sight of things; and actually, God rather delights in the details as well! Oh, and we cannot fool ourselves thinking we trust God, and then be given to worry.

When we worry, we are not trusting God.
When we worry, we are saying we can only trust God to a point.
Indeed, our worry shows a small trust in God. You see, trusting God strengthens us, and not trusting him not only weakens us, but it affects the very heart of God.

While it appeared that Jesus was late coming to the little Bethany home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus, he had a plan all along. You might be praying, asking God for direction about something right now—I know that I am!—and while the answer is not yet clear, God is on the job, Christian! So there is no need to fret, no need to worry ~ he who sees when one sparrow falls to the ground sees and cares for you. He loves you and delights in answering your prayers. Believe it.

Decide to have faith and stand on it. Trust God and his timing. “But those who wait on the Lordshall renew their strength;they shall mount up with wings like eagles,they shall run and not be weary,they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40.31) Sometimes, like in the case of Lazarus, God has a much bigger plan, a grander scheme than we could ever think or imagine … but no matter what, he is watching, and he is in control. Let go, keep praying, and trust him.

Christine Todd DiGiacomo

PastorWoman.com