Galatians 1:15-17 (NKJV) 15 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, 16 to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went to Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.
Waiting on God, and understanding His timing, is probably one of the hardest things we can do as believers.
Our flesh almost always wants to act right away when we get understanding about something, or when we feel like we’re supposed to make a change. It’s just a natural reaction.
In the verses above, Paul talks about his conversion to Christianity, and what happened immediately afterward.
Most of us might think that Paul got knocked to the ground, met Jesus and then took off on his evangelistic journeys right away. This isn’t how it happened, though!
Immediately after his conversion, Paul was led to Damascus, and then spent three days waiting for Ananias to come and restore his sight. During that time, he neither ate nor drank.
Once Ananias came, and Paul’s sight was restored, he spent some time there with some of the other disciples, but then he left and wasn’t heard from again for 3 years!
During this time, Paul spent time in a wilderness area, being prepared for his ministry by God. It was only after this preparation period that he returned to Damascus, and then onward to Jerusalem, where he met with Peter and other disciples, face to face, for the first time.
God was preparing Paul for a mighty work. It was something that Paul would do for the remainder of his life here on earth. And he took the time necessary to wait on God to release Him into that work.
This is a great lesson for all of us to learn from, especially when it comes to understanding God’s timing, and the importance of waiting on God.
There will be times in our lives when God shows us something, and we see results, or take action, right away.
Then, there will be other times when He reveals something to us, and He wants us to wait, not doing anything or saying anything to anybody about it until He releases us to do so.
This is a very hard thing for us. We don’t always understand it, and we also wrestle with waiting.
But as we grow in our walk with Him, and we begin to get understanding in certain areas, we will begin to see this more clearly. We will also develop a better understanding of the importance of waiting on Him, not moving or speaking until He says to do so.
If Paul could wait three years, it’s pretty safe to say that we can probably wait, too.
Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie
Seven Seas Ministries
P.O. Box 272
Bradford, RI 02808
401-315-0902
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