God's Timing

By SUSAN SMITH WALKER

One of the most important things we learn in our faith experience is that changes come in our life according to God’s timing. Sometimes the change we are waiting for takes longer than we had anticipated, and we find ourselves waiting on God. We have done all we can and now the rest is up to Him. We have learned that we cannot rush God, and in our prayers, we ask Him to help us accept His timing.

Noah is a great example of one who had to wait a long time on his change to come. In Genesis God told Noah to build an ark so he and his family would live through the great flood that was coming. This was a huge project. When he was finished, he was to fill it with food and two of every living creature so that after the flood God would replenish the earth through them. God said that it would rain for forty days and forty nights, so Noah had an idea of how long he would have to wait to come out. Forty days didn’t sound too long.

Most of us think Noah and his family were in the ark for forty days but that was only how long it rained. God’s plan to replenish the earth would take much longer than that. It took another 150 days or almost five months for the water to recede enough that the ark rested under the water on a mountain named Ararat. Several more months go by and finally Noah can see the tops of the mountains. Many more months go by as Noah waits for the earth to dry up so they can come out. During this time Noah was probably frustrated, trying to make the food last and take care of all the animals. By now many of the animals had mated and babies were born all over the ark. It was getting crowded and smelly but as much as Noah wanted to come out, it wasn’t time yet.

Noah was six hundred years old when the floods started and six hundred and one when he finally was able to leave the ark. It took over a year for God to bring about the change he was planning. Noah might have thought it was only going to take forty days for God to start over with the creation, but the flood was just the beginning. The bigger plan was that God had to restore the earth after the flood. Finally, the day came when they could leave their confinement and go on with their lives in a new world, but it had taken so much longer than they thought. Noah had planned for forty days of rain, but God’s plan was much bigger and the time He needed to accomplish it was much longer.

So, it is with us and God’s timing in our life. We see God moving and trust that He is taking us to a new level but why is it taking so long? We had counted on things moving faster than this, but unexpected delays come. Life is messy and doesn’t go according to our plan. Sometimes we try to rush things forward to no avail. We just have to wait on God.

If God’s timing is frustrating you today, remember His plan is bigger than yours.

Rev. Walker is the pastor of Emanuel Reformed Church www.emanuelreformedchurch.com and can be reached at 828-962-8196 or revsusansmith@gmail.com