Timing
by Jenine Szymanski / Next Gen Resource Coordinator
It's been said that God's timing is much different than ours and I know this to be true. But when a prayer request is begun at age 17, and 30 years pass, I begin to doubt. Not God's plan or His purpose, but the fact that my request may be answered with God's majestic "NO!"
Recently I experienced God's mighty blessing regarding this, but I realize I still have a lot to pray for. Life is not a Hallmark movie which I, to my family's dismay, love watching especially at this time of year. Thirty-year-old problems are not solved in one sitting. Relational hurts don't go away overnight, but I serve a God who is BIGGER than even this. Even in this I am trying to set a positive example for my children. God has also used Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 to impress these truths not only on my mind, but my heart as well.
So, if you are reading this and find yourself in a place of disbelief, take this scripture to heart: Romans 12:12, “be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8:
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
It's been said that God's timing is much different than ours and I know this to be true. But when a prayer request is begun at age 17, and 30 years pass, I begin to doubt. Not God's plan or His purpose, but the fact that my request may be answered with God's majestic "NO!"
Recently I experienced God's mighty blessing regarding this, but I realize I still have a lot to pray for. Life is not a Hallmark movie which I, to my family's dismay, love watching especially at this time of year. Thirty-year-old problems are not solved in one sitting. Relational hurts don't go away overnight, but I serve a God who is BIGGER than even this. Even in this I am trying to set a positive example for my children. God has also used Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 to impress these truths not only on my mind, but my heart as well.
So, if you are reading this and find yourself in a place of disbelief, take this scripture to heart: Romans 12:12, “be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8:
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.