Am I waiting for God's timing?

Again, the devil took Him along to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; and he said to Him, "All these things I will give You if You fall down and worship me." Then Jesus said to him, "Go away, Satan! For it is written: 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.'" - Matthew 4:8-10

In this, the third temptation of Christ by Satan in the wilderness, Satan was not offering Jesus anything that His Father had not already promised Him. Satan's temptation to Jesus was to get what is rightfully yours NOW, jump ahead of the Father's plan and timing, avoid the cross's pain and suffering and get it NOW. Think about the impact on your life had Jesus let pride and avoidance of pain cause Him to succumb to Satan's lies. There would be no Savior of the World!

The consequences of getting what you want NOW as opposed to waiting on God's timing can have significant long-term implications. Consider Abraham, a man singled out for his faith throughout Scripture. God had promised that his descendants would outnumber the sands of the seashore. However, with he at age 86, Sarah at age 77, and no children, there was no physical way in their finite minds that they would ever have their first child, let alone more descendants than stars in the sky. It was obvious to them that God needed their help NOW. So, in their human wisdom and their NOW timing, Hagar, the maid, was brought in to provide a son. Fast forward 4000 years, the descendants of that child have been the major source of unrest and terrorism, not only in the middle east but throughout the world. There are consequences, some with lifetime duration, to getting ahead of God's timing and getting what I want NOW.

If the Lord Jehovah makes us wait, let us do so with our whole hearts; for blessed are all they that wait for Him. He is worth waiting for. The waiting itself is beneficial to us: it tries faith, exercises patience, trains submission, and endears the blessing when it comes. The Lord's people have always been a waiting people - Charles Spurgeon.

If Satan can get you to execute on what you want NOW, or what you deserve NOW, or I don't see any possible way if I don't act on the opportunity NOW, or it must be God's will because I have a way to make it happen NOW, he will render you ineffective to execute God's plan and accomplish his plan to keep you deceived and defeated. Remember, you cannot serve two masters. You will serve either Satan's lies or God's will in God's timing.

"Now, therefore, fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and do away with the gods which your fathers served beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served, which were beyond the Euphrates River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord ." - Joshua 24:14-15

Whom will you serve today?

Be Encouraged to execute God's will in God's timing.

-Jeffrey Thornton