Joy of the Journey: Delayed, but not denied

Delayed but Not Denied!

 

A few years ago, I attended a church and listened to a sermon by Pastor Jentezen Franklin, and the following statement was made, “We serve a crockpot God in a microwave generation. “OH Wow!” 

 

In Habakkuk 2:2-3 we read the following:

“And the Lord answered me: “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. The vision still awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.”  

 

This has been one of the key verses in my life over the last 30 years!  I heard a message while I was in college.  The minister shared about allowing God time to fulfill His vision for your life.  It is a challengingthing to wait on the Lord!  

Let us face the truth: waiting does not come naturally to us.  We live in a world that focuses on life being fast and convenient.  The philosophy is the quicker, the better.

 

I started preaching many years ago as a 19-year-old kid!  I received a vision for my life, and like most people, I struggled because I didn’t see it come to pass immediately.  The truth is we forget the part of the verse in Habakkuk, which reads, “For still the vision awaits its appointed time…”  God’s timeline will never be ours!  In other words, we will always be impatient with God’s vision and purpose.  We want it to happen now, “microwave generation.” We believe God will provide it based on our desires and our timeline.  However, God is a “crock-pot God.”  He uses the events in our lives to shape us to fit the plans He has for us.  I know many gifted, talented people who spend a lifetime trying to make who they are fit into the plan/vision God has for them!  If we do not get this, we will grow bitter in our walk with God!  We will give up and feel God has misled or lied to us.  Many people think, “He promised me ________________, and I have yet to see it happen, and I have waited at least 24 hours!”  Well, maybe a little longer than that.  We live for the moment; God plans our lifetimes!  God is shaping you to fit the vision, not the vision to fit you!

 

I want to encourage you that you are not alone.  All the following people had to wait on the Lord to fulfill His plan.

 

•  Noah had to endure mockery and scorn for 120 years before the rain and floods came!

 

•  Joseph had to wait 20 years before the fulfillment of his dreams! 

 

• Moses had to wait 40 years on the backside of the desert before God would speak through the burning bush.

 

• From Adam & Eve to the cross, estimated 4000 years!

 

The list could go on and on of those who had to learn to “wait upon the Lord.”  Remember the rest of Habakkuk’s passage: “… it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.”  It will come to pass!  GOD IS NOT A LIAR!  Hold on for the best He has saved for last.  If you don’t believe me, ask the guest that attended the marriage supper in Cana… Jesus’ first miracle shows this point. In John 2:10 NLT, “A host always serves the best wine first,” he said. “Then, when everyone has had a lot to drink, he brings out the less expensive wine. But you have kept the best until now!”  Remember, it’s not how you start the race; it’s how you finish.

 

I am praying for you to have a fabulous week!

 

Pastor P.