One of my favorite songs is “Time Will Reveal” by DeBarge. Now, if you haven’t heard DeBarge, I suggest you press pause and go listen to a few songs— “Stay With Me,” “Be My Lady,” “The Walls Came Tumbling Down,” “All This Love,” “Rhythm of the Night,”— then come back and press play. If you don’t know El, James, Randy, Bobby, Bunny, and Mark, you should get to know them. “Time Will Reveal” is one of my favorites because the song is about a love between two people that is riddled with doubt and insecurity and there is hope that they can overcome these obstacles. The singer sings to his lover, trying to convince her that his love has matured and “this time” is different; but only time can reveal.
Time is tricky—especially with the Lord. His “soon” and our “soon” are not the same thing. Time with the Lord is all about maturity, accountability, and responsibility. God’s timing and our timing rarely seem to be in line off the bat; He tends to make us wait and that waiting humbles us in various ways. When you feel as though the Lord has spoken to you regarding something, time is the best indicator on if it is of godly origin. In Jeremiah 32, the prophet Jeremiah is in prison in the palace of King Zedekiah. During this time the Babylonians had laid siege to Jerusalem and despite Jeremiah’s preaching, prophesying, and warnings that Jerusalem would fall to Babylon, despite the Babylonians literally surrounding the city and denying entry and exit, despite all the signs pointing to the end, the people were in denial. They did not believe Jeremiah, nor did they think the Babylonians were able to defeat them. The people believed in God with their lips but their lives showed lack of respect for Him; they worshipped other gods, committed injustice and oppression, and only when things got bad did they rely—not repent—on their history with God.
When all signs are pointing to the end, denial is a natural response.
Yet, despite Jeremiah’s preaching, prophesying, and warnings that Jerusalem would fall to Babylon, despite the Babylonians literally surrounding the city and denying entry and exit, despite all the signs pointing to the end, God told the imprisoned prophet to do something strange— invest in what is ending. God spoke to Jeremiah and told him that his cousin Hanamel was coming to him to sell a plot of farmland in order to redeem it. Even Jeremiah thought this was strange because there was no need for the land anymore since they were being taken captive to another country. Yet, in time, his cousin Hanamel went to see him in prison to sell him the farmland in order to redeem it. It was only after it happened that Jeremiah believed he had heard from God concerning this. God spoke to Jeremiah concerning what would happen, yet it took time to be fulfilled (I’ll leave the shout for the sermon.) One of the issues with hearing from the Lord concerning anything we pray for is that when we hear it, we assume it is supposed to happen now and when it doesn’t work out we become frustrated and doubt all the Lord has said and done to show what His will is. A prayer I am surely learning to pray is, “Lord, is it time?”
Time is sometimes the best way to know if we have heard from God or not. Sometimes the sign we are looking for is for it to actually happen. But that takes time, waiting, and trust. It’s difficult when we want what we want. But there is preparation that needs to be done to receive what we prayed for. God can’t restore anything to you that you are not willing to let go of. Time can be seen as an adversary, or it can be an ally in strengthening our trust in God. Sometimes, only time will reveal what God’s will is, and when God uses time to reveal His will, it is always opportunity to grow and experience the goodness of the Lord in our waiting season. Our waiting seasons are God’s sustaining seasons. In light of possible frustration and anxiety about the unknown, trust that time will reveal.
Until next time, continue to stay guided by grace,
Tra
Guided by Grace 