You May Be in a Hurry, but God Is Not
By Rick Warren

“God . . . does everything just right and on time, but people can never completely understand what he is doing.” Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NCV)

If you want to slow down your life, you’ve got to learn to trust God’s timing.

When things aren’t happening as quickly as you hoped, it’s easy to get impatient. But do you know what impatience really is? It’s a lack of trust.

When you’re impatient, it’s like you’re saying, “God, I don’t really trust you. I don’t think you have my best interest at heart. I’m in a hurry for something, and I don’t believe you know when I need it.” You get worried, you get hurried, and you start scurrying—because you don’t trust God to do things at the right time and in the right way. So instead of trusting his timing, you struggle and strive.

If you’re like most people, when you want something, you want it fast. But is fast always better? Not always.

The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 3:11, “God . . . does everything just right and on time, but people can never completely understand what he is doing” (NCV).

God has a plan for your life. You probably know that. But he also has a timetable for your life. Here’s the thing: God never explains his timetable. And sometimes that can be really difficult to accept.

One of the most painful things in life is when you’re in a hurry and God’s not. As children grow up and mature, they learn the difference between “no” and “not yet.” A delay is not the same as a denial.

As a follower of Jesus Christ, you have to learn the same thing: God’s delay is not his denial. He has a plan and a timetable. And his timing is perfect.

During the 15 years that Saddleback Church grew without a building, this is the verse that God used to encourage me: “This vision is for a future time. It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled. If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed” (Habakkuk 2:3 NLT).

Has God given you a vision that hasn’t become reality yet? It’s coming—but on God’s timetable. In the meantime, slow down and trust him.

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This devotional © 2018 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

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