The past few weeks I have had my calendar out, as I plan for our summer and fall activities. It always feels like I can’t get everything in the calendar! Things get changed around over time due to some thing changing or plans happening. My calendar never seems right or doesn’t happen the way I started out planning. I need to be flexible for emergencies or items I didn’t see coming, but God did! Does that ever happen to you? God’s calendar does not always align with me. There have been so many seasons I wait on Him. In fact, some YEARS of waiting. Isn’t it hard waiting? Our culture has eliminated the need to wait. We have so many instant services from grocery shopping, pet services, and just about anything with daily delivery. We have become a culture that cannot wait. We teach our kids to have patience but over time these conveniences in our culture have taught us we ourselves need help with patience! So what does it look like when we wait on the Lord when our calendars don’t align to His? We learn that surrendering our calendar means TRUSTING God with His and His perfect timing. I am not sure what you are waiting on, perhaps it’s healing, job loss, your child to find Jesus, or a prayer you desperately want answered. God uses these “waiting” periods to help us grow our trust in Him. We pray, spend time with Him, and trust His calendar. He doesn’t leave you in the waiting period alone, He is right there holding your hand waiting for you to take hold of it. But don’t get fooled, the devil is there too. He is very good at giving you opportunities NOT to trust the Messiah. The story of Hezekiah illustrates how God’s calendar is much better than our own. We need to trust Him and not fall into temptation of our own power and will. Hezekiah loved the Lord. Judah was being threatened. The Assyrian army was huge and wanted the people out. The king of Assyria, Sennacherib came to Hezekiah and essentially mocked him and told him they had more power than God. Asking him why He would put faith God, when He was stronger. He mocked him so all of Judah hear and could go against Hezekiah. Hezekiah was upset and angry. He went to the Lord. He prayed and then sought out Isaiah for guidance. Isaiah told him not to worry and God would take care of it.
Read Hezekiah’s prayer, Isaiah 37:16-17 “O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, God of Israel, you are enthroned between the mighty cherubim! You alone are God of all the kingdoms of the earth. You alone create the heavens and the earth. Bend down O, Lord, and listen! Listen to Sennacherib’s words of defiance against the living God.”
Now his prayer keeps going, but can feel his tone in his words? He goes to our Creator with everything. I picture him on his knees kneeling, with his hands raised. Hezekiah knows he cannot fight alone. He needs His king to intervene! Isaiah had told him the king of Assyria would be killed when he returned to his own land. Hezekiah could take care of the problem himself or wait on the Lord and have Him fix the problem. Do you ever feel like you change the problem or wait on what the Lord has told you? Waiting is Hard. Trust me, it’s hard! I want to fix the waiting period sometimes and do whatever I can to make it end. But in all reality God’s calendar is so much better and filled with so many blessings! When I wait, I often ask God to help me. He brings to light all these little times I have waited, and when He has come through. He wants us to “remember” and “reflect” on what the Lord has done for us in the past so we can trust him in the present. So as you plan, remember what God has done for you in the past. He is a good good Father!!!!
