Psa 27:1 The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? (KJV)

1Pe 2:25  For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls. (KJV)

You were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.

Psa 9:9  The LORD also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. (KJV)

The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.

[Love] bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 

1Co 13:7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. (KJV)

2Pe 3:8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

We don’t like to wait for anything. If our computers are a nanosecond slow we figure we need a new one. If the red light lingers at the traffic intersection we rage at the unfairness of life. If the queue moves slowly we wonder what we have done to deserve it.

We want things to happen now, if not sooner. God has different ideas. He operates in a different time zone. We want to rush ahead, God often wants us to wait. We think we can see the end result and the way to achieve it. God bids us to think again. He knows the whole picture whereas we only see part of it.

It is sometimes said that there are three basic answers to prayer: “No”. “Yes”. And “Not Yet”. That last one puzzles us. We want to make things happen, but making things happen before their due time is no achievement at all. We do better to trust God’s timing. The creator of time is the master of timing.

Blessings
David Reay

1Pe 4:7 But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.
1Pe 4:8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.
1Pe 4:9 Use hospitality one to another without grudging.
1Pe 4:10 As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
1Pe 4:11 If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Luk 10:38 Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.
Luk 10:39 And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus’ feet, and heard his word.
Luk 10:40 But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me.
Luk 10:41 And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things:
Luk 10:42 But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.

This very familiar passage is a reminder to us that activity does not always mean achievement. How busy we are isn’t always the best guide to how fruitful we are. It is a particular temptation in Christian work to confuse busyness with productivity and obedience. Jesus reminds Martha that taking time to simply be with him is more important than fussing around distracted by secondary matters, important though these might be.

We often want to be up and about doing all sorts of good and worthwhile things for God and for others. But we need first to get our marching orders from God. We need first to acknowledge and make a priority our personal relationship with God. Otherwise we become overly busy activists who are full of sound and fury but who achieve little.

Being quiet with God, sitting at Jesus’ feet, might not seem productive. And to be sure this is not all we do. We can perhaps speculate that a bit later in this episode Mary did get up and give Martha a hand in the kitchen. Idleness is not being encouraged, merely a right ordering of our priorities.

Only as we stop restlessly doing things will we find out what really needs to be done. We may dare to experiment with a life of doing less in order to accomplish more.

Blessings

David Reay