“When Jesus heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days” (John 11:6).
If you’re waiting to see God move, you aren’t alone. Abraham and Sarah waited 25 years to hold their baby Isaac. Joseph waited 13 years to be appointed to the leadership post he had been promised. The woman with an issue of blood waited 12 years to be healed, while the paralytic waited 38 years to walk again.
But while you are waiting, God is working.
There are several reasons God waits:
- You aren’t ready.
- Others aren’t ready.
- He isn’t ready.
In 1968 I was eight years old. That made the news devastating. “We are moving,” Dad said. His business in Houston had dropped off, while his client list in Dallas had grown. So we were moving away from friends and home to a place I had never been.
Our house sold quickly before we had a place to move in Dallas. So we rented an apartment in Houston, not far from our old house. And we waited – for five years. The increased business in Dallas never materialized, so we stayed in that apartment for the rest of my childhood. In year five, a church bus ministry knocked on our door. The next day, I rode their bus to church. It was at that church that I came to faith in Christ 50 years ago, in 1974.
God’s timetable is different from ours. Sometimes, even in the midst of our crisis, he does nothing. Then, at just the right time, the resurrection comes.
Recovery Step: Trust the heart of God when he goes silent.
