Psalm 27:14 (NKJV) 14 Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!
As we grow and mature in our walk with God, we like to think that we will also grow when it comes to learning to wait on His timing for things in our lives.
The problem is that it doesn’t always happen the way we would like it to.
Sometimes we get impatient and step out on our own, ahead of God. This can get us into trouble.
Many people know the story of Abraham and Sarah, and how they took it upon themselves to “help” God deliver on His promise to bring them a son. And we all know how that turned out. It wasn’t good at all.
There is another example of this in God’s word that we rarely hear about, so let’s take a look at it and see how it played out.
After Jesus had ascended to heaven, the apostles decided that they needed to fill the place that was left empty by the departure of Judas. They felt it was important to keep the number at 12. So, they began to reason it all out.
Acts 1:22 (NKJV) 22 beginning from the baptism of John to that day when He was taken up from us, one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection.”
As they began to work it out, they narrowed it down to two different people who had followed Jesus for a very long time; Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.
Once they had narrowed it down to these two men, they drew lots and chose the new apostle, Matthias.
Acts 1:26 (NKJV) 26 And they cast their lots, and the lot fell on Matthias. And he was numbered with the eleven apostles.
Now, it might not seem like they were doing anything wrong if we stopped right here. They did, after all, want the number of apostles to be 12, since that was the number Jesus had chosen.
What they didn’t know, however, is that God had already chosen someone else to take that 12th spot. His name was Paul.
If you read through the rest of the New Testament, you will never see the name of Matthias mentioned again. Paul, however, became a powerhouse for God, building and growing the body of Christ until his very last days, even dying for his faith.
You see, even powerful men and women of God can wrestle with His timing sometimes, trying, instead, to do things by human understanding.
So, it’s important that we make our decisions and choices very carefully, being patient to wait on God to bring His plans to fruition in His perfect timing.
Wait, I say, on the Lord!
Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie
Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808
401-315-0902
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