DIVINE TIMING

FOCUS WORD:  DIVINE TIMING

FOCUS VERSE: Ecclesiastes 3: 11 - He has made everything beautiful in its time.

DECLARATION: God’s timing is perfect in my life; no delay can deny my destiny.

God works according to His perfect time, not ours.  Man tends to move according to his times and this is where many misunderstandings rise.  In the Greek language, ‘time’ is  described by two words - chronos and kairos.  Chronos time is that by which we set our clock; we live our life by this time.  Kairos is the time of heaven i.e., the time that is perfect according to God.  
Illus: Mary and Martha send messengers to Jesus informing Him that their brother Lazarus was ill.  But Jesus did not visit them immediately.  On the contrary, He went to the town of Bethany when Lazarus had been dead for four days.  This was the kairos time of God; not according to the chronos time of Mary and Martha.  Divine timing means God arranges events according to His purpose and wisdom.  What looks like delay to us is often ‘under preparation’ in God’s hands.  God arrives never too early nor too late;  He will arrive at His perfect time.  

Habakkuk 2: 3 - Though it lingers, wait for it.  

Gal. 4: 4 - When the time had come, God sent His Son.

The promise of the Saviour was given in the book of Genesis, but Jesus came hundreds of years later.  God has a program and a schedule; He moves only accordingly.  A seed planted too early, before the season will die in the cold earth.  But planted in the right season produces much crop.   God plants His promises at the right time.  

Waiting seasons shape our character.  Waiting patiently is very difficult in human nature and we tend to go forward with our plans.  God uses the waiting period to refine our faith, remove pride and build patience.  God’s focus is on building us up in faith rather than on the fulfillment of our promise.  Delay is not denial, but development; it develops our character.  Eg: A potter works on the clay till it is of the right consistency that the pot will not break on baking. If it is taken off the wheel too early, the clay in the pot will become mushy and lose its shape.  If it is taken off the wheel too late, the pot becomes too hard and may break.  Waiting shapes us into vessels ready for receiving the blessings. 

Psalm 27: 14 - Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!

Isaiah 40: 31 - But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

James 5: 7 - Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord.  see how the farmer waits for the precious fruit jof the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains.  

God’s timing protects us from premature blessings.  The blessing we are looking forward to, what we think we require immediately, may destroy us if we receive it too soon.  God’s timing guards us from pride, confusion and loss.  God gives responsibility only when maturity is ‘ready’.

Provs. 20: 21 - An inheritance gained hastily in the beginning will not be blessed in the end. 
Gen. Chapters 37 to 41 - Joseph went through many many years of trials till he received his promise.
Psalm 75: 6 - For not from the east or from the west and not from the wilderness comes lifting up,
7 - but it is God who executes judgement, putting down one and lifting up another.

In God’s time, everything becomes beautiful. When God releases His blessings, it carries peace, order and promise.  His timing turns struggles into testimonies and tears into songs.  
Isaiah 60: 22 - The least one shall become a clan, and the smallest one a mighty nation; I am the Lord; in its time I will hasten it.
Romans. 8: 28 - And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.  
Psalm 126: 3 - The Lord has done great things for us.  

God develops our destiny in hidden seasons.  Abraham had the promise of offspring.  But Sarah, without waiting for God’s time, sought a solution through her servant-maid Hagar.  The offspring was Ishmael.  This was a premature blessing and till today there is conflict between the son of promise, Isaac and Ishmael.  This conflict has been carried on through generations - premature blessings will destroy us.  Divine timing is God’s gift of beauty in the right season.  We need to trust Him in the waiting, obey Him in the process and praise Him in advance for the fulfillment of the promise.  What God has promised will surely come to pass - not by our clock, but by His calendar.  Wait with faith, walk in obedience and rejoice because in His time, everything will be beautiful.    

God bless you all!