it's not your timetable

Joshua 1:9
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."

In today’s world we get bogged down in right now. We spend large amounts of time worrying, large amounts of time absorbed in us. Our little world, and the few people that are in it. We tend to live about six inches past our nose.

How will I…..what if…..there is no way that I can…..we look at so many of our problems as if we have control over them. How can we fix it, how can we assert ourselves to get the outcome we want. We spend billions each year learning to “cope” with all of our daily pressures. The actual problem is that we cannot give up control.
Let me say here yes I understand the need for medical intervention, and I am not inferring that we should not use the tools we have at hand, I am not talking about the medically ill, but the spiritually sick.

We are so sure that the answer is right around the corner. That if we push a little harder, or scream a little louder, or worry a little more, then miraculously the wrongs in our life will turn right. I have a thought for you. Let God drive. I am not saying that you should give up sit down and wait for something to happen. That is not driving at all! What you do have to do is put forth your best effort, and be done with it.

It has taken me a long time to come to grips with this, and I still battle with it from time to time, but guess what? Everyone is not going to like you, things are not going to always go your way, and you are going to make mistakes. All any of us can do, is our best. That is it. If we put forth our best effort there is nothing left to do. We have to let the Lord’s plan unfold. We have to allow him time to set the stage.

We have to give up one of the things that we love to horde. Time. We seem to forget in today’s fast paced world that God’s plan involves more than just us. As much as we would like to believe the sun rises and sets around us, that is not the case. We have to give the Lord time to work things out. We waited over 700 years for Christ to become man. It is little wonder that we might need to wait a few days, months, or even years for our direction to become clear. Joseph sat in prison for two years before the Pharaoh pulled him up and made an equal. Moses wandered in the wilderness for 40 years before making it to the promise land.

Whatever is happening right now is happening for a reason, We might not understand it, we might not agree with it, but one thing is for certain, the answers will be forth coming. In the meantime, we should focus on our relationship with the Lord, we should look to those around us that need help and freely give it. We should get out of our self absorbed cocoons and recognize that part of the Lord’s plan might just be for us to be right where we are at, and make an impact on our world right now. We cannot see it if we are banging our head against a wall, or trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. We should listen for the Lord, but we will never hear him over our own voice!

Peace,
Rev. Thetford