When you received a word from the Lord about a promise He wants to give you, have you ever thought to yourself when, where and how it might happen?
Let’s get this blog rolling with a personal narrative.
It’s morning, your alarm goes off and you start thinking about that promise God gave you.
“I wonder if today is the day?”, you think to yourself.
You heart begins to feel heavy.. “But what if it isn’t?”
Panic starts to creep in and you feel yourself starting to spiral into negative thoughts. Fear begins to overtake you and you start to feel anxious about your future.
As you begin to get ready for the day, your mind hasn’t left the idea that the promise could happen any second.
You’re done getting ready and you head to the car. As you are driving, you begin to daydream about all the possibilities that could happen today. They can call you for a new job, you run into your future husband or wife at the grocery store, or that maybe, just maybe, you and your spouse become pregnant! Whatever it may be, you start to get excited and that’s all you can seem to think about.
Then BAM. The day is over and nothing happened.
You’re lying in your bed, weeping out of disappointment. You cry out to God saying “why must this waiting season be so long?” “Why me?” “When is it going to be my turn?” “I long for this. Don’t you care about me?”
Silence feels the room as you lay there with tears in your eyes, hands tucked in a prayer position, cuddled underneath a freshly washed warm blanket. Then all of a sudden you hear a still small voice say, “My child, you are anticipating my promises and it’s causing you heartache. Why don’t you trust me?”
You consider these words you just heard and decide to ask yourself why you don’t trust in the Lord.
You recognize how exhausted you’ve been feeling, wondering when and how your promise might come to pass or if it will even come at all.
Relief floods in. You now have an answer from God even if it’s not a “yes, it’s time”. You feel relief because His words created a ripple of new ideas in your mind.
These are the thoughts you had:
-Anticipating God’s promises has built walls around your heart. This is because you expected your situation to go a certain way and when it didn’t, disappointment came. This has made you angry and bitter towards God, causing strain on your relationship with Him.
-Anticipation is an act of impatience and is the opposite of rest. This is causing anxiety in your life making it hard to live in the moment.
-Anticipating KILLS love. It puts an expectation on someone or something to get the job done. When this doesn’t happen, resentment starts to grow for the other person that’s involved.
-Anticipating means striving and chasing something before it arrives at its destination. To handle it before its expected time. When we anticipate, we operate in our own timeline which can cause us to act out of the time frame God has planned for us. This is not good and can hurt the very thing you are chasing so hard after.
-Anticipation doesn’t give room to receive. In fact, it takes up space. This is because you spent all your time worrying about when it will happen instead of cultivating and preparing for its arrival.
-Anticipation slows growth. This is because all your focus is on this one particular promise. And when you are distracted, you have a hard time walking in the open doors God has for you.
-Anticipating delays breakthrough. God doesn’t want you to stay stuck guessing. He wants you to live abundantly in every moment.
-Anticipating is a sin and needs to be repented and turned away from.
Then, before you know it, you find yourself disappointed again. But not because of the promise. This time it’s because you know what you have to do.
Let go.
You start to feel very sad. But it’s not because you are letting go of the promise. It’s because you are letting go of your control.
You wonder how this can be possible.
2 Peter 3:9 says this, “The Lord is not slow to fulfill His promise as some count as slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”
This verse is the very heart of our Father. Not wanting us to perish but to be patient with us as we turn our face towards Him. So that He can fulfill our hearts instead of letting the promise.
God is not slow when fulfilling His promsises. We just think that He is because we need some sense of control. It is not our job to anticipate God’s promises for our life. It causes stress, anxiety and heartache which are all things God does not intend for us to live under. Our job is to repent and turn away from anticipation so that we can live life the way we were intended to live. Still and in the presence of God, abiding in Him and Him in you. God wants you to be able to receive the promise in full. And the only way to do that is to let go, and trust in His perfect timing.
I hope this brings hope for those who are waiting. Good things are coming, they just take time. Thanks for coming to read!
Until next time!
