Instantly Takes Time

"As the rain and the snow come down from the Heavens and do not return till they have watered the earth, making it yield seed for the sower and food for others to eat, so is my word that goes forth out of my mouth; it will not return to me idle, but it shall accomplish my will, the purpose for which it has been sent." - Isaiah 55:10-11

They say ours is a generation of instant gratification… instant messages and television on demand. We're always on the move and expect everything right away. And then I hear that patience is a virtue and that the Lord said, "be still and know that I am God," but yet Jesus walked through towns like lightening, instantly healing and saving people just by touching or speaking to them. So which is it? Are we to expect fast results from God or should we learn that IM's don't work with God?

I think the answer is both. When we hit the "on demand" button on the remote or IM someone, we do it because we already know the information is there and it's ready. When Jesus went through towns healing, He already knew the faith of the people was ripe and it was His time to bring the Kingdom of Heaven… but rewind to years ago and we didn't have the technology we have today. Go back to before the Wedding at Cana and Jesus wasn't ready to perform His first miracle. We can only get fast results when the time is right… when the fruits are mature. Isaiah puts it beautifully in describing the way rain falls from Heaven and does not return until it has watered the fields, produced fruit, and fed His people. God gives us His Word, He makes promises to us, and we can't collect on those promises until His Word has run its course and completed His will. We can't expect to collect on anything until God's promises for us are complete… and we shouldn't want to demand anything because the more time passes, the richer and fuller the fruits of God's promises are for you. The longer the rain takes to return to God, the more seeds it has watered, and the more fruit is out in the field. And once that fruit has matured, everything God has promised will be given to you abundantly and best of all, instantly!

Today's Prayer:
Father, help me to see that the longer You take to answer my prayers, the bigger my reward is in You. Give me patience to trust in You and wait until You let me enjoy the fruits of my prayers. In Jesus' Name we pray, amen.