How to Know God's Timing for Your Life
How to Know God’s Timing for Your Life
There is nothing better than being in the right place at the right time.
The sense of God’s divine direction and appointment for our life is one of the greatest things we experience as Christians; it is an assurance that we are in God’s will. However, there is nothing quite as frustrating as being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
There is nothing better than being in the right place at the right time.
When pastors call me to schedule meetings, I always pray for God’s perfect time for the meeting to take place. I have ministered in some churches and left frustrated and disappointed, only to return a year or so later and see the Spirit of God accomplish great things. What made the difference? Being in the right place in God’s time.
What IS God’s Timing?
When we talk about God’s timing, there are certain aspects of Jesus’ accomplished work we must understand. For example, God did not ordain a certain time to heal you, because Jesus already took your sickness. Since healing already belongs to you, you do not have to wait for a certain day to be healed. You do not have to wait for a certain day to be saved either, because Jesus bore your sins two thousand years ago. Furthermore, there is no certain day set for you to die. Live until you are satisfied with life! (See Psalm 91:16)
God has a plan – an ultimate purpose – for your life, no matter what your vocation is. The talents and abilities God has given you will enable you to accomplish that purpose. You do not have to be called into the ministry in order to work effectively in the kingdom of God. Simply do your job well, and do it for the glory of God.
God has a plan – an ultimate purpose – for your life.
There are seasons in your life to prepare you and equip you to do the job God has for you. What you are doing now may only be a small step toward God’s ultimate plan for you. It’s only when we get a “stuck-in-a-rut” mentality that we can miss what God wants to accomplish in this “rut.”
What if the 7-year-old child who wants to be a doctor decides that school is a waste of time? She will never fulfill her dream. It’s vital to have patience during seasons of preparation, for they are equipping you to fulfill God’s plans for your life.
God has a plan – an ultimate purpose – for your life, no matter what your vocation is.
It’s vital to have patience during the seasons of preparation.
It does not matter how old you are or what job you hold. You must see God’s seasons in your life as a progression of knowledge, maturity, and experience that will ultimately fulfill God’s plan for you. If you rebel against it, it may slow down the timing in fulfilling the dream of your heart.
God Can Overcome Your Mistakes
What if you have already missed God’s plan and made some serious mistakes? God always has alternate routes!
Look at the life of Moses. He was born in the right place at the right time. He was called to deliver the children of Israel from Egyptian bondage. When he was an infant, Moses’ parents hid him in a basket on the river to preserve his life. After Pharaoh’s daughter found him, she called for a nurse. The nurse was none other than his own mother! It was a divine appointment. Moses, his mother and Pharoah’s daughter were all in the right place at the right time.
After Moses grew to maturity, God put a dream in his heart to deliver his brethren from the Egyptians, but Moses missed God’s timing. When he saw an Egyptian cruelly mistreating a Hebrew slave, he killed the Egyptian. (Exodus 2:11-15) God intended for Moses to deliver the entire nation, but because Moses’ timing was off, he only “delivered” one Hebrew. As a result of this mistake, Moses dwelled as a fugitive for 40 years in the backside of the desert.
I think after 40 years in the desert, I would have been quite discouraged that I would never fulfill God’s plan. But God moved supernaturally in Moses’ life and used him to ultimately lead the whole nation of Israel out of Egypt.
God can overcome our mistakes. It does not matter how you have missed God or what sins you have committed. God’s grace and power are greater than your mistakes!
Don’t Try to Fulfill Your Dreams in Your Timing
In 1974, God gave me a dream of flying my own airplane throughout the United States and teaching the Word of God in rural areas as well as cities where the people are hungry. (I did not have a literal dream; God simply planted this in my heart. I could see myself flying to take the Word to parts unknown.)
However, in 1974, I did not have my pilot’s license. I hadn’t even taken a single flying lesson! Besides that, I didn’t have many invitations to speak – and the ones I had were definitely to parts unknown.
What if I had tried to fulfill this dream myself? It is possible that I could have raised the money or believed God for an airplane. But then what would I have done? I could not fly an airplane, and if I had actually believed one in, I couldn’t have paid for its fuel or maintenance.
In 1978, I took flying lessons and received my pilot’s license. This was one step toward fulfilling my dream. God’s plan is often fulfilled one step at a time.
I never lost hope in my dream, because I knew that in God’s time it would come to pass. By 1981, my meetings and schedule had increased dramatically. I needed an airplane, and by then I could afford the fuel and maintenance costs. Through a series of divine appointments, half the money I needed was donated to the ministry, and the other half was already in savings. The dream given me in 1974 became a reality in 1981.
How You Can Know God’s Timing
To know God’s timing, you must first know His will for your life. If you are born again and walking in fellowship with God, your desires and God’s desires should be the same. Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” If you delight in Him, He will put the desires into your heart.
The next step is to commit yourself to God’s plan for your life. Proverbs 16:3 says, “Roll your works upon the Lord [commit and trust them wholly to Him; He will cause your thoughts to become agreeable to His will, and] so shall your plans be established and succeed.” (Amplified) If you are committed to God, He will cause even your thoughts to become agreeable with His will. That’s a sure way to succeed!
When the time has come for a dream to be fulfilled, your level of expectation will begin to build. Deep in your spirit, there will be a “knowing,” a sensing, and a confidence that the time is drawing near. Even though circumstances may seem totally opposed to the fulfillment of your dream, a sense of “rightness” and peace will rule in your heart.
Walking in God’s timing is so important. We must not jump ahead of God; neither should we lag behind in disobedience. Joy in serving God comes as we find ourselves in the right place at the right time!
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