How long have you been waiting for the Lord to show you His will? Ten minutes, ten hours, ten days, ten weeks or ten months? What’s with the lapse of time? Why doesn’t the Lord jump when I snap my fingers? Why doesn’t He answer as soon as I make the request?

Jeremiah, God’s prophet during a horribly dark period in Jewish history, had many reasons to weep. As conditions deteriorated in the southern kingdom of Judah, Jeremiah was falsely accused of treason and was thrown into a sinking hole of mud. He was later rescued, but things didn’t improve. On August 14^th, 586 B.C. Jerusalem was surrounded by the Babylonians, invaded and eventually destroyed.

A remnant of Judah escaped to Bethlehem. There they asked Jeremiah to pray for Divine direction. “What is God’s will? Should we stay here in Bethlehem, or should we flee down to Egypt? Please, Jeremiah, we want to know God’s will before we make any move.”

Here’s what they said to Jeremiah:

Let our plea for mercy come before you, and pray to the LORD your God for us…because we are left with but a few, as your eyes see us – that the LORD your God may show us the way we should go, and the thing that we should do.” Jeremiah 42:2-3

The people promised to obey God’s will. So Jeremiah prayed for the Lord to reveal His will. Then he waited. Day one. Day two. Day three. What’s taking the Lord so long to get back to Jeremiah with direction? Is He in a quandary Himself as to what to do next? Day Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight.

Had Jeremiah’s request been lost in the host of other things God has to do? Day Ten arrives, and God provides explicit directions to Jeremiah for the remnant. Definitely don’t go to Egypt. Stay put, and God would fully take care of them. But why the ten-day wait?

The first lesson is – God’s not bound to our calendars and clocks. He operates in a different ‘time’ zone – so to speak. He inhabits eternity. Secondly, He’s not obliged to jump when we snap our fingers. Thirdly, He doesn’t have to reveal His reasons for keeping us waiting, and we know there can be no mistake in His timing because God is inherently good. Fourthly, the patient God organizes things to boost the patience-quotient in His people.

Incidentally, the upshot of this story is the remnant chose to do their own thing anyway. Perhaps they had just been curious about God’s will, and their promise of obedience was shallow at best. And yes, they suffered the consequences of doing their own thing. Bible teacher, the late William MacDonald once made this observation:

Modern-day Christians often do the same thing: they ask God for guidance – and they often request counsel from parents, Sunday School teachers, elders, pastors, and others – yet their mind is already made up to do what they want. Unfortunately, such “seeking counsel” is all window dressing.

Am I waiting for the Lord to give me guidance on a matter? Are you waiting? Allow Him to answer in His own good timing, and when He does, may we be careful to fully submit and obey.

Walk carefully and closely with the Lord today.

Warmly in Christ,

Peter Ramsay

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