GOD'S DELAYS IN OUR LIVES!

Our God Who Delays!

2 Peter 3:9: "The Lord is not slack concerning His promises, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering towards us". 

Let's don't let anything that's happening around us take away our joy. Its human nature to get impatient when things become slow and we become discontented and get frustrated. 

Let's learn to rejoice in the delay of life! Let's learn patience to wait for the Lord's time and not to get disturbed or agitated. 

Let's see how and why God 'delayed' the birth of Isaac and later Jacob. It was to build up the faith of Abraham and Sarah and Isaac and Rebekah. 

See how God delayed the fulfilment of the dreams of Joseph and how he was elevated to be the ruler of Egypt  more than 13 years after the dreams. His brothers fell at his feet about 15 hears after he got his dreams. God delayed to build up Joseph and equipped him to meet the challenges of his elevation. 

God delayed the arrival of Samuel in the life of Hannah! She suffered ridicule and mockery from Peninnah. She prayed for a child and God gave her the faith to wait upon the Lord for His time. Her faith and patience were rewarded by giving her six children when she only asked for one child. 

Our God is the God of delays! He is not in a hurry! He has a set time which is His perfect time to fulfill His promises in our lives. He is a Builder of lives and He creates and recreates slowly, steadily and systematically to help His children to mature in faith.

God's delays are His appointment for His perfect time. The concept of "delay" is only in the perception of man and not God's. God's time frame is always perfect. 

But God's seeming delays are not inactivity, but preparation to build our faith up! 

God seems to delay, but never forgets His promises. He remembered Abraham, Rachel and Hannah and met their needs and desires according to His perfect will and at His perfect time! He gave them the faith to wait for His perfect time and to build up their faith to wait for His time. 

God's seeming delays are because He is building lives of faith as strong as oaks and olive trees out of us and not as grass which withers away within a few days. 

He delayed Israel's wilderness journey for 40 years to teach them lessons of faith and also because of their disobedience! Israel had to be ready for Canaan by exercising their faith. 

Israel had to walk around the wall of Jericho for 7 days before the wall fell so that they would learn to obey God and to build up their faith to wait for God's time. This was God's way to teach them patience and to mature their faith. 

His 'seeming' delays in our lives are our learning experience in His School of Patience! 

Shall we praise God for His 'delays' in our lives and submit ourselves into His hands and His timeframe to learn patience and to become mature in our faith!!

Prayer for Today

"O God! Strengthen my faith and help me to mature in my trust in You so that I would never complain or have anxiety about the 'seeming' delays in my life. Help me, O God, to learn patience and wait joyfully for your time to come like Abraham, Isaac and Hannah and never complain. Forgive my impatience, Father! In Jesus' name! Amen"!