Patience in the Preparation

My dog would eat just about anything. Sticks? Absolutely. The garbage? Free game. Bird poop? Worth a try. And guess what? When I tell her no, she usually gets upset with me. When I tell her, "No you can’t eat that dead animal," she pouts and sometimes even gives me a sassy little bark back. 

She doesn’t know it, but I’m actually trying to help her. I know it’s in her best interest that she doesn’t eat everything she wants. I know my chocolate bar probably looks really good to her, but it would not be good for her.

My dog might not know what’s best for her, but I do. She only hears me say “no” without understanding why I’m saying it.

I think sometimes we can act like this too. We God tells us “no", we are quick to get upset, discouraged, and even angry without understanding why He said it. We can’t help but think things like, “I deserve it.” or “I’ve already waited so long.” 

But what if when God tells us “no”, He's doing it for the same reason I have to tell my dog “no”. 

Maybe He’s saying “no” to save you from being hurt. Maybe He's still preparing you for it. Maybe right now isn’t the right time for what you desire.

Maybe we don’t always know what’s best for ourselves.

There are certain things my dog wants or does that will always warrant a “no” response. When I tell her no you can’t eat bird poop, I don’t mean no you can’t do that right now. I mean no you can’t ever do that. Why? Because that’s disgusting. 

But sometimes when I tell her no, I just mean not right now. 

A walk? Yes, but not right now. Some peanut butter? Sure, but in a little while.

Either way, my dog only hears the word “no”. She doesn’t understand that if she’s patient she’ll get exactly what she asked for. 

God might tell you “no, not ever” sometimes, but He might also just be telling you “no, not yet”. 

I don't have a baby, nor have I spent a lot of time around babies. In some ways, they are like dogs though. Sometimes you have to tell them "no" for their own good.

You don’t give a baby super-hot food. Why? Because they would burn their mouths. Instead, you wait and let it cool off. You blow on it so that when you do give it to them it’s the right temperature. Of course, the baby doesn’t understand what you are doing and why you are doing it. The baby only sees that you are withholding something from them that they want. They have no idea that if you gave them the food when they wanted it that they would get hurt. Of course you are going to feed them, but only when it’s safe for them to eat.

God might be doing the same thing with you right now.

We might think God is just withholding a good thing from us, but what if He’s actually in the kitchen preparing it and cooling it off for us right now? What if when we think He’s ignoring our prayers that He’s actually hard at work on them right now?

There are countless examples of this in the Bible, but my favorite is the story of Joseph. Talk about someone who had to wait a long time for God to finally tell him “yes”!

When he was only 17 years old, God told Joseph through a dream that he would one day be in a position of leadership. Being young and a little naive, Joseph told this to his brothers. If you are familiar with Joseph’s story, then you know that he was the favorite child in the family. His dad didn’t exactly keep his feelings a secret and even made Joseph a super fancy coat. So, when Joseph told his brothers about his dream, they decided this guy might as well just go kick rocks. They debated on killing him but settled for buying him a one-way ticket to slavery.

I’m taking some creative liberty a bit in telling you the story but stick with me.

This eventually led Joseph to be a slave in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh. While it was less than ideal circumstances, the Lord was still with Joseph. He found favor with Potiphar and was eventually put in charge of Potiphar’s whole house. Still, God would tell Joseph “not yet”.

One day Potiphar’s wife took an interest in Joseph and decided to shoot her shot. Joseph rejected her attempts, but it didn’t matter. Soon he was booked another one-way ticket, but this time to prison. 

Even in prison, the Lord was with Joseph. The keeper of the prison took notice of this and eventually put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners. It was here where Joseph would meet the Pharaoh's chief cupbearer and chief baker. 

One night they both dreamed and were greatly troubled that they had nobody to interpret their dreams. Lucky for them, God had placed Joseph in that prison too. Joseph was able to interpret their dreams. Joseph told the chief cupbearer that his dream meant that in three days the Pharaoh would restore him to his position, and he would place the cup in Pharaoh's hand once more. Joseph begged the cupbearer to remember him when this happened. 

The chief baker on the other hand wouldn’t be so lucky. His dream meant that in three days he would be killed. 

Joseph’s interpretation was right. In three days the chief baker was executed, and the chief cupbearer was restored to his position. Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph but forgot him. 

Once again, God told Joseph “not yet”.

For two more years Joseph sat in prison. Could you imagine? We think two minutes is a long time today! The cupbearer forgot about Joseph for two years until one day the Pharaoh had a dream that needed to be interpreted. It was only then that the cupbearer remembered the young Hebrew who had correctly interpreted his dream. 

When Pharaoh heard about Joseph, he quickly called for him and brought him out of the pit. Long story short, Joseph told Pharaoh that his dreams meant there would be seven years of plenty and seven years of famine. Joseph’s interpretation pleased Pharaoh and thus he put Joseph in second command of all of Egypt only behind Pharaoh alone. In Genesis 41:46 it says, “Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt.” (ESV)

You heard that right. Joseph was 30! When Joseph first dreamed that he would be in a position of power he was only 17 years old. God made Joseph wait 13 years and He certainly didn’t make the waiting easy either. Joseph was betrayed by his brothers, sold into slavery, and sent to prison. Yet he remained faithful. 

Some of you might have read that Joseph was 30 and thought “wow so young”, but the rest of you (myself included) heard 30 and it made your skin crawl. 

I’ll be honest, there’s a few things in my life that I want right now, but for some reason or another God keeps saying “no”. I don’t want to wait until I’m 30 for some of the things I’m praying for. I want them now! But at the end of the day, I know I have to trust in God’s timing. In Isaiah 60:22, He promises, “At the right time, I, the Lord, will make it happen.” (NLT)

When Joseph was in prison, I’m sure it would have been easy to question God. It had been a long time since he dreamed that he would one day be in a position of power. Maybe he got it wrong? Maybe he misunderstood God? But instead, Joseph stayed faithful. 

What Joseph understood is that delayed doesn’t mean denied. Sometimes it just means God isn’t done preparing it for us. Or rather, He’s not done preparing us for it. 

I know we all think our plans are perfect, but the reality is that only God’s plan is perfect. In my last blog post I talked about Jeremiah 29:11. It says, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord. “Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (NIV)

It doesn’t say, “You know the plans you have for you.” Instead, it says, “The LORD knows the plans for you, and they are good!”

We love to quote this scripture, but we so often forget the context in which it was written. Jeremiah did not write this letter to people who were living a life of luxury. Back up to Jeremiah 29:1 and it says, “Jeremiah wrote a letter from Jerusalem to the elders, priests, prophets, and all the people who had been exiled to Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzar.” (NLT)

Did you catch that? He’s telling a group of people in EXILE that God has a good and perfect plan for them. 

So, I get it. It sucks that you are still single. It sucks that you aren’t married yet. It sucks that you don’t have a baby yet. It sucks that you don’t have your dream job yet. 

But God’s plan is good, and His timing is always perfect. You might feel like Joseph, like you are sitting there waiting for God to answer your prayers. Maybe you are in year 1 of waiting and maybe you are in year 13, but don’t lose hope!

In Galatians 6:9 it says, “And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.” (ESV)

When Joseph got sent to prison, he could have given up, but instead he continued to serve the Lord faithfully. Which is what gave him the opportunity to interpret the dreams of the chief cupbearer and chief baker. Joseph's patience in God's preparation is exactly what set him up for success.

I know it feels like you have been waiting forever, but in due season it will be your time too. I’m not saying God will answer every single one of your prayers. Truth be told, there’s probably a few that will go unanswered, but not because He doesn’t love you. 

I love my dog, but I still don’t let her eat and do everything that she wants. So, trust that God is doing the same for you. Trust that He's working all things for your good. Continue to serve faithfully in whatever season you are in and don’t lose hope.

You never know, God might be in the other room preparing a feast for you right now. Maybe it’s out of the oven and He’s cooling it down as you read this. Maybe He’s about to take you from the pit to the palace!