Isn’t it funny how we make our plans, only to have the Lord do things another way?
Everything around us is planned – bus schedules, movie times, meetings with agendas, etc. all so that we can schedule our lives accordingly. Sometimes it can even feel like we are at the mercy of some master calendar that we didn’t sign off on. But if Jesus is Lord, then we are on his calendar. So why are we still bound by culture’s schedule?
A step further… Maybe it’s not culture’s calendar holding us. Maybe it’s one of our own preferences.
If time isn’t enough to make you feel the impossibilities of your God-given dreams, then perhaps the dreams themselves inspire cynicism.
It’s interesting… We often think of dreamers as being hopeless optimists. But what happens when the dreamer has encountered one too many closed doors? The dreamer can quickly become a cynic. At its core, cynicism glorifies our own understanding, forces outcomes of our own design, and ignores God’s ability to do the impossible.
If Jesus is Lord, then we are on his timetable. So why are we still bound by our own preferred or culturally accepted schedule?
And lately, I fear I’ve become the cynic.
Some of the things I’ve dreamed of, even had confirmed from others from both my friendship and leadership circles, have taken far longer than I ever thought and far more effort than I feel like I should have to give. If it’s God, shouldn’t it be easier than this?
Not necessarily. In fact, there are quite a few people in the Bible who encountered delays and difficulties. Joseph comes to mind. The dreamer, not the father of Jesus. (Although the latter encountered his fair share of struggles as well; not easy raising the Son of God.)
Joseph the dreamer not only encountered delay, but also door after door slammed in his face along the way. But God did what He said He would do.
The Israelites wandered for forty years in the desert after being delivered from slavery. But God did what He said He would do. They took possession of the land they were promised.
What happens when the dreamer has encountered one too many closed doors?
The dreamer can quickly become the cynic.
Speaking of the promised land… Jericho was one the final straws to taking possession of the promise. And God told the Israelites to do the weirdest stuff in order to take the city. But God did what He said He would do.
While we’re on Jericho, there’s something else I’ve been thinking about. First, full disclosure: I’m in a wrestling season. Wrestling with what God has called me to do versus how I expected Him to accomplish it.
Which is what gets me stuck on Jericho. This account happens in Joshua 6 and is the first battle fought by the Israelites in the course of the conquest of Canaan – aka the Promised Land. This forty year journey forced them to encounter so much of God’s provision and power in ways they never could have without it.
Things like the parting of the Red Sea in Exodus 14 when God allowed them to walk between walls of water on dry land. When they came out on the other side, they could easily knock the dust off their feet.
No mud, no mess. Total miracle.
Oftentimes, God’s miracles are fueled by our obedience to His methods, not by His adherence to our expectations.
But Jericho is different. For six days, the Israelites marched around the city walls – walls designed to keep them out – in silence. And then on the seventh day, they marched in silence seven times. That’s about as normal a battle tactic as walking through an ocean.
But on the seventh walk of the seventh day, the walls fell.
Access granted.
At the Red Sea, the Israelites came through the water clean and dry. But when the walls of Jericho fell, things weren’t so clean. Those crumbled fortresses most definitely left a mess. And yet, each moment led them to the promise. God just wanted to do it another way.
Messiness is not indicative of the absence of a miracle. Likewise, the lack of residue doesn’t necessarily mean that God isn’t present.
Maybe the takeaway here is that oftentimes, God’s miracles are fueled by our obedience to His methods, not by His adherence to our expectations.
He finishes what we can’t. When we find ourselves at the end of our effort, we have the opportunity to encounter the power of God.
This is so encouraging and powerful! I really love this quote, Oftentimes, “God’s miracles are fueled by our obedience to His methods, not by His adherence to our expectations.” So true, Kylie!
Yes! God is too big for our imaginations and expectations – we can’t box Him in!