We’ve all heard the cliche saying, “wait for God’s timing, He has a plan for you, it’ll all turn out how it’s supposed to.” However, for a lot of us, I feel like we discredit those words. All too often it feels as if we are just settling. What we want, or need, isn’t coming to us, so we will “wait” for God’s timing, when in reality, we just give up on it all together.
For us, as humans, waiting isn't easy. Maybe you've been struggling financially and keep asking God, “when will I not have to worry anymore?” Maybe it seems like your time is never going to come. And what I want to say is that, maybe it isn’t.
What I’ve been thinking about lately, and have been continually humbled by, is God’s omniscience. Yes, we know He can see all things, and He knows all things, but what does that really mean in terms of our lives? God can see from beginning to end, start to finish, from the day He created light until the day He will destroy that very light. Your life, in the timeline of eternity, is but a tiny speck of existence, so small it almost seems insignificant. But, to us, and more importantly to God, it is of utter importance.
He can see from the day you were born until the day you will die. He already knows what grade you're going to get on your exam, and he already knows how many sleepless nights you'll spend tending to your future kids. He can see every situation you have, currently, or will go through, and He knows what is to come of it.
To put this into perspective, in the book of John, Jesus is asked by Mary and Martha to come to the town of Bethany to heal Lazarus, who was very ill. Lazarus was a close friend who Jesus loved wholeheartedly. Obviously, Jesus had the power to heal him in an instant, but instead of doing so, Jesus stayed where He was for two days after He was summoned by Mary and Martha. Now, imagine the thoughts of those close to Lazarus. They were asking themselves, 'why is Jesus, who loves us and can heal our brother, simply sitting where he is at, and letting us live in agony?' They questioned His timing, just as we do, all the time.
When Jesus finally got to Bethany, Lazarus had been dead four days. “Why would you let this happen?” Mary asked Jesus, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Jesus replied, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” With that, Jesus asked the stone to be rolled away from the tomb, and Lazarus emerged, alive and well.
Sometimes we get angry at God for not providing us with what we want exactly when we want it. But just like Mary and Martha, sometimes all we can do is wait for God to work his magic in our lives. The bible says that if your faith remains strong throughout your struggles, you will be rewarded.
Sometimes our rewards will not be as great as say, our loved ones rising from the dead, sometimes they are not even what we want them to be. But, as I mentioned earlier, God can see from beginning to end, He knows the plans He has for you, and He will not let you fall.
With our mouths we pray, ‘thy will be done,’ but with our hearts we hope ‘thy will match mine.’ Why would we limit a Sovereign and Holy God to our human condition? We must learn to hope for immeasurably more.
