I’m honest enough to publicly admit a major shortcoming in my character. I’ve been waiting. But I think I’ve been waiting a bit too long.
I like to be very thorough when I study a subject. And if I’m attempting a project, I like to plan in detail so I am able to succeed. But I don’t like to start until I feel confident that I’m prepared. Spiritually I’ve been waiting for God to prepare me to do great things for Him. But it seems as I’ve grown older that God has been waiting for me to take action.
There has always been the idea in my head that if you pray long and hard enough God will reveal His will to you. Then, once you have your marching orders you are set. Now you can go out into battle. But what if you’ve been waiting 20 years and no marching orders have come? Does that mean God isn’t ready yet? Or does it mean God is waiting for us to take action?
Let’s consider this series of questions. What if she hadn’t touched the hem of his garment? What if his friends hadn’t lowered him down through a roof to see Jesus? What if she hadn’t had the boldness to enter the throne room of the king uninvited waiting for the approval of his extended scepter? Would her people have been saved? Would he have been healed? Would her bleeding have stopped?
It seems that God has some things that he will only give to us if we take an action first. The action is our demonstration of faith. Hebrews 11:6 tells us, ” But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” Asking, seeking, knocking or even reaching can be our sign of faith that pleases God. He in turn blesses our faith action with a favorable result. But what if we never took that leap of faith?
I believe that the stories of the bible reveal consequences both of taking action and of refraining. The 5 foolish virgins don’t get to go to the wedding. The servant who hid his one talent gets it taken away from him. There were two thieves at the cross with Jesus. One reached for life and got it. The other simply missed his moment. Please don’t miss your moment!
