FAITH & REFLECTION -- We live in a world where information, news reports and the latest gossip is all "instant access," available at our fingertips. In fact, our smart devices and apps all use predictive logarithms to provide us with the trending information we like best without us even asking for it, it just shows up for us.
But life doesn't use those same algorithms, it is not predictive and things don't move at hyper-speed.
Being that this is a faith article, I want to reference the amazing story of Abraham. Across 10 short chapters (Genesis 12-22) we follow a story of great faith and perseverance.
Abraham, leaves his home and makes an epic journey, following God's promise even though he doesn't know where he was going, the story covers 30 years of waiting, enduring faith-testing experiences, and finally realizing fulfillment.
The problem is, it only takes us about 10 minutes to read it all. We see the whole episode, from promise to fulfilment in a readers' timeline and we end up expecting our own life's fulfillment should happen at a similar rate.
I know God can do anything in an instant, but we need to be okay with trusting Him in the long haul.
The challenge of faith is surviving the wait.
Matthew 13:31-32 state: "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed planted in a field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but it becomes the largest of garden plants; it grows into a tree, and birds come and make nests in its branches."
That's a metaphor for life that I can buy into, start small, but grow big, becoming so established that we can be a habitat for life for others too. A small seed and a big tree, that's my kind of story.
But, seeds become trees under the ground, buried in the darkness of the soil, a suffocating picture with no fast forward.
Beyond our dislike of waiting, we often reinforce the 'God has forgotten me' woes when life's troubles come our way.
Observations of the shrinking Great Red Wood forests have exposed how our success in preventing forest fires is the problem. It's the heat from those fires that open the Red Wood seeds for germination.
Some kinds of seeds only open up after they have been through the digestive track of animals.
I guess the summary here is, even though you may feel forgotten, or in the fire, or up to your neck in it, the great tree of fulfilment and destiny that is supposed to be your life is on the way. Have patience, you're worth it.
Ephesians 3:20-21 20 state: "Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever & ever. Amen."
If you can't imagine God being able to meet your needs, answer your problems, open doors to your future, close doors to your past, satisfy your hunger and thirst, make the impossible possible, or create anything from nothing, then it is not God you are imagining.