Ever since I started my insurance business earlier this year, I have developed a habit to help safeguard my success. To the best of my ability, I will pray and read the Bible out loud to ensure my financial success. To some, this habit may come off as a bit superstitious. Maybe it is my way of manifesting what I want to see like many gurus have recommended. Living on a 100 percent commission basis is a constant faith walk, where I depend on God's favor to bring me the provision I need at all times. But sometimes I noticed that my habit of saying God's word can morph into something else. Often times I fall into the trap of thinking that I am forcing God's hand to move on my behalf by simply reciting scripture. I especially love to read Deuteronomy chapter 28 and Judges chapter 1, because deep down I think those scriptures are really effective at bringing me what I want. I call those my daily blessing scriptures. Today while supervising my daughter in her online class while trying to get in my daily recital one of those God thoughts popped into my mind.
In the midst of one of the busiest times of my day, (getting all three kids logged into remote learning) one thought cut through my inner noise. It is God that COMMANDS the blessing in my life, not me. That one word commands caused me to stop and recall the scripture I read yesterday morning. Yesterday the Spirit guided me to Psalm 33:8-12 ESV and this is the part that really stood out to me.
"8 Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!
9 For He spoke, and it came to be; He commanded, and it stood firm.
10 The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing, He frustrates the plans of the peoples.
11 The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations.
12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom he has chosen as His heritage!
Yesterday I meditated on the thoughts that God is so powerful that He frustrates the plans of entire nations. There is nothing that is impossible for Him to do. The idea that God needs ANYONE to fulfill his purpose is laughable. Therefore I can place my trust in the All-Powerful one that rules in heaven. For God SPOKE and it came to be, He COMMANDED, and it stood firm. Fast forward to today and I was gently reminded that I'm not the one commanding the blessing by just recited a scripture. But it is God Himself that is commanding the blessing in my life. Reciting and meditating on His word is still a good thing. But I shouldn't fall into the trap of manifesting, which takes God out of the equation and puts the Lordship on me instead.
Tell me if this situation sounds familiar to you. You receive a promise from God, and you know with every fiber in your being that this promise is especially for you. To make sure that the promise will come to pass you begin to do the things that are required to see the promise come to fruition.
Prayer
Fasting
Removing sin and living holy
Wait for the promise to come
But instead of the promise appearing, trouble comes instead so the list gets longer
Prayer
Fasting
Removing sin and living holy
Asking for others to pray and fast
Wait for the promise to come
Now surely the promise will make its appearance right. But no, frustration and doubt have stepped into the process instead. This causes the list for the promised manifestation to get longer still.
Prayer
Fasting
Removing sin and living holy
Frustration
Doubt
Repent for doubting
Wait for the promise to come
What if I told you that God's checklist may look a lot different from ours? What if the things required for the promise to appear in our lives requires an unexpected journey instead
Tribulation
Perseverance
Character
Hope
Faith
Love
Promise
The Wait
The apostle Paul in writing to the church in Rome used Abraham as an example of waiting on God for what appeared to be an impossible promise. Twenty-four years had passed from the time God first mentioned to Abraham that he would be a father (Genesis 12). By the time Genesis 17 comes around Abraham is 99 and Sarah is 90, physically there is no way that a child can come forth at this point. Just like them, in our lives, there have been promises that seemed absolutely impossible to come to pass from a natural standpoint. But what God asks of us is to believe in Him instead of ourselves. First God would change Abram's name to Abraham to reflect the promise of the father of many nations. Sarai's name would also be changed to Sarah the mother of many nations (Genesis 17). At this point, Abraham and Sarah had already gone through their promise checklist. Just like us, out of frustration of waiting on God to fulfill His promise, they decided to try and make things happen themselves by their own works.
Yes, it is good to pray and do all those things. But don't put your hope in the doing of the checklist to make the promise appear. The timing of all things is in God's hands, our part is to put our trust (faith) that what He promised, He is able to perform. So whether that be a promise of marriage, healing, a child or etc. God does not disappoint! "Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured, out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us (Romans 5:5).
God versus You
When did Abraham finally become the father of many nations? Was it when Isaac was born or when he believed? Well, the word says this:
"I have made you a father of many nations, in the presence of Him whom he believed-God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist a though they did; who contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken. "So shall your descendants be". And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah's womb. He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform (Romans 4:17-21)."
Who is able to make the promise come to pass, God or you? Your faith, your hope, your promise is all centered and founded on the belief that God is. Because God is good, because God loves you, because God is faithful to keep His word your promise will be fulfilled. Continue to pray and fast and seek God's face, but always remember that the promise is based on God's ability to perform not yours. "But without faith, it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him (Hebrews 11:6)."
As many of you know I am a mom of three beautiful children. Last week the children's father called to tell them that he was going to get them a yummy surprise. Thiana my youngest was particularly excited because her daddy always gets her the best treats. While the kids were waiting for their dad to come over Thiana was starting to get a bit hungry. She said mommy when is daddy coming, I'm really hungry? I said do you want something to eat while you wait for your dad to come? Yes, can I have some square cereal? I said you sure can. As I was preparing her cereal, Thiana had another question. Mommy if I eat this cereal I won't be hungry for daddy's surprise. Your right, you probably won't have room to eat daddy's surprise if you eat now. I watched as Thiana was faced with this moral dilemma, as concern washed over her little face. Mommy, I don't want any cereal I will wait for daddy to come. Are you sure sweetheart? Your daddy may be running a bit late. Yes mommy, Thiana replied I will wait for daddy.
Twenty minutes later Thiana comes back to my office and climbs into my lap. Mommy when is daddy coming, I'm really hungry? Your daddy will be here just like he promised sweetheart. Doesn't your daddy always give you yummy things when he promises? Yes, said Thiana but I'm really hungry now! But if I eat the cereal I won't be able to eat the surprise. Are you sure daddy is coming? Well, baby, you know that your daddy loves you very much right? Yes mommy, said Thiana. Then because your daddy loves you, he will come with your surprise. But if you want I can always get you cereal while you wait. What would you like to do, for it is your choice Thiana? Then I will wait for daddy to come, I won't eat the cereal. Certain in her choice and convinced that her daddy loves her she hopped off my lap and went to play with her sister.
As their Dad got delayed, Thiana went through the choice of eating now or waiting for the surprise at least 3 more times that afternoon. Each time I told her that her father loves her and he will keep his promise to his little girl. Despite the hunger pains she was going through, each time Thiana chose to wait, and declared that daddy is coming. Finally, the long-awaited moment arrived when Daddy came bearing all kinds of treats. Thiana got a big juicy cheeseburger that looked almost bigger than her head, as well as some lollipops and snack cakes. As she dug into that big cheeseburger, with meat juices dripping down her chin she smiled and said I'm glad I waited, Mommy.
Trusting in the Prophetic Word
Whenever God sends His word to us, we as believers are immediately faced with a choice to make. Do we believe in the divine word that was sent or do we find our own way to meet our needs? Thankfully in all things God has provided an example to us of what not to do while waiting. The writer of Hebrews said " TToday if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion" Hebrews 3:15. During Israel's Wilderness (waiting) season "God said that they tested Me, tried Me, and saw My works for 40 years, so I swore in My wrath they shall not enter My rest" Heb3:9-11. Do you remember that saying that God will not give us more than we can bear? Well, that principle applies to when God asks us to trust Him with the right time for the promise to appear. When we were new believers, did you notice that God often came through for you quickly? Sometimes in the most dramatic and spectacular fashion imaginable. Those deliverances left no doubt in your mind that God was with you and for you. As you begin to mature in the faith, He started to put you in situations where the wait is stretched out a bit longer. In an ideal situation, you would have recalled how God came through the last time and held out and trust that He would come through again. This cycle continues over and over again with each delivered promise bringing us to another level in Christ. Hopefully, while we wait on God, we begin to rest on His promise, knowing that if He did it before, He will do it again. That rest during the wait is what keeps us from working to make something happen in our own strength. Let's go back to the example of the Israelites and what not to do while waiting. The journey during the Wilderness kicked off in spectacular fashion. A pillar of fire guided their way by night and a cloud by day. This lead them to the Red Sea miracle where God forever put their former life behind them, by parting the sea and drowning Pharoah's armies. God was doing everything possible to show them that the people could trust Him just like their forefathers did. Apparently, God didn't build up enough trust for the Israelites because it quickly went out the window a mere THREE DAYS after the Red Sea deliverance. The Israelites complained about the bitter water as if God wouldn't supply water for them. For it was God that took them on that route! This dysfunctional cycle of miracle, complaining, disobedience, repentance, and miracle continued until the final culmination of the mutiny of the 10 bad spies. At that point, God had enough of the relationship and decided to start again with the next generation.
Entering His Rest
So what stopped the Israelites from entering the Promise Land? The writer of Hebrews said that an evil heart of unbelief caused them to depart from the living God. In every scenario where the Israelites faced a dilemma, instead of holding fast to the promise that God would provide, they would despair and act out. Now, what does unbelief look like to God? Unbelief says to God I don't trust You, and because I don't trust You, I don't believe that You will do what You said. Remember unbelief stops the hand of God from acting in your life because it also leads to rebellion. Recall the first human sin in the garden Genesis 3:1-5. God had provided for Adam and Eve for probably years in a perfect environment. Then Satan comes along and causes Eve to lose trust in God's motives and provision for her household. Thinking that God was now untrustworthy she took the matter of knowing good and evil into her own hands. The result, God's provision was canceled out and they were kicked out of Paradise. When Jesus was traveling in His hometown, He could not do many mighty works because of their UNBELIEF Matthew 13:58.
"A promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. The word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it, for we who have believed do enter that rest" Hebrews 4:1-3. Remember that God will equip you to perform the duties He has called you to do. If you feel during your waiting that your faith is running short, then ask Him for faith. "For by grace you have been saved, through FAITH, and that NOT OF YOURSELVES, it is the GIFT of God, not of works lest anyone should boast" Ephesians 2:9. If you find yourself questioning God that is ok, He can handle your questions. In fact, it is better to take your questions to God and have a difficult conversation with Him, rather than letting Satan talk to you about your questions. We have a great High Priest that can sympathize with our weaknesses. Our High Priests tells us to come boldly before the throne to find mercy and grace to help in our time of need, Hebrews 4:16.
Hasn't God performed so many miracles in your life up until now? Remember that your heavenly Father loves you. He has given you a great high priest in heaven, and Christ lives to make intercession for you. Lastly, God has given you His Spirit that lives and dwells inside of you as proof that you are His child. God will come through for you. Wait and trust in His timing, for He knows when you will be ready to receive. For the blessing of the Lord maketh one rich and He adds no sorrow with it Proverbs 10:22.
My name is Shannelle, I am a stay at home mother, writer, baker, artist and all around woman madly in love with her Creator! I also have a YouTube channel under Java Devotions.
