GOD’S PERFECT TIMING
1 Samuel 13:13-14
“You have done a foolish thing,” Samuel said. “You have not kept the command the LORD your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time.
14 But now your kingdom will not endure; the LORD has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him ruler of his people, because you have not kept the LORD’s command.”
It had been a beautiful afternoon. The temperatures were amazing for a late September day and the elk were bugling. Dave and I along with two of our elk hunting clients were chasing a herd of elk with a few bulls bugling. We were very close but the herd was on the move. We went from high on a ridge across a draw and up onto another ridge about a mile away. Then the herd started down… way down and we ended just about Salazar meadow alongside the Calebra River. We almost caught up to the herd at the valley floor, but they turned around and went right back the way they had come, bugling all the way.
Just before sundown we had lost the herd. We were just about camp (when I saw “Just above camp, I mean a mile or so uphill”. We sat and visited and were ready to call it a day, when a bull bugled straight above us… not far, but a 500 for ascent up to the ridge top above. Off we went.
As we neared the top we again lost track of the elk. We crested out in a patch of amazing golden aspens on a west facing slope. If we had been 5 minutes earlier or one minute later we would have missed one of the most memorable sunsets of our lives. We had worn ourselves ragged and now we were going to be an hour from camp… but we stopped and just watched the darkness overcome the beautiful mountain.
I had argued the idea chasing the elk on that last ridge, but I was wrong, God had a plan to show us His awesome beauty and majesty. His timing was amazing and perfect.
In the scripture above Samuel is telling Saul that because he did not wait on God’s timing, he lost out on blessings… huge blessings
In John 11 we read a story of Jesus’ friends, Mary, Martha and their brother Lazarus. Mary and Martha had sent a message to Jesus letting Him know that their brother Lazarus was deathly ill. Surely the message that went out to Jesus made it clear that it was urgent that He come to heal Lazarus. What did Jesus do? Verse 6 says, “So when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was.”
Why did Jesus wait? Because God’s timing is ALWAYS perfect. He knew ahead of time that Lazarus would die before He and the disciples would arrive. By the time they arrived Lazarus had already been dead for 4 days. If Jesus had only arrived before he died… but when He arrived He called out Lazarus from the tomb and he rose from the dead and walked out.
Gods timing is ALWAYS perfect. He could have healed Lazarus before he died or He could prove God's love and almighty power by do an amazing miracle. Because of His timing and love we even today, 2000 years later, realize we can trust in His love and timing.
Galatians 6:9
Let’s not become discouraged in doing good, for in due time we will reap, if we do not become weary.
God showed me His perfect timing on the mountain that September afternoon and Jesus gave His disciples, Mary, Martha and Lazarus an amazing gift as well. They saw first hand His love, His power, His timing and His control. If we look close, we will see the same in our lives every day.
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