The book of Ecclesiastes says that there is a time for everything. Unfortunately, this scripture includes among its list ” a time to wait”. This can be derived from the portion that says: “A time to be silent and a time to speak”. Silence is a biblical descriptor for waiting or inactivity.  This passage of scripture tells us that God’s plan for His people may have different components since it says that there is a time for all things. Many of us don’t mind a time to sew and a time to harvest, we don’t mind a time to build up or tear down. But, when it comes to that “time to be silent (wait)”, that becomes a whole different thing.

When we feel we are waiting or being held in a certain place, we get frustrated. Maybe God has taken us to our expected end. Maybe we are not adequate to continue. Maybe we have done something wrong. Maybe-Maybe. The point is, we don’t know. The way that we wait is the public display of our current level of faith. If we truly believe that God has a greater plan, then we should be willing to allow Him to direct the timing. This has got to be one of the harder roles to play in the grand scheme of things since it demonstrates to ourselves that we are not in control and have truly submitted our will to God’s.

In the busy world that we all live in, we sometimes must travel via mass transit. Whether that be bus, train, or plane. Depending on the length of the journey there is a likelihood that at some point we will be delayed. Our journey can be running smoothly from the beginning to a certain point and then the captain or director of the vehicle we are traveling in says that we must hold up and wait. Many times we are not told why. Nearly always it has to do with something that is happening ahead of us in our journey. Perhaps there are hindrances or blocks at junctures ahead, or perhaps our next destination is not ready for us to arrive. The point is, something is not ready for us to be at our next stop. It is not always a direct complication due to us personally. Now, we on our end don’t know what is happening so we get frustrated and begin to think the worst about the situation and ourselves. This is where the test of faith comes in.

Our lives are equivalent to a long journey. This journey is orchestrated by God based on the plan He has for our lives. Everybody has a mission in life. Based on its size or the length of the journey through the mission, delays, layovers, and holding patterns must occur. Events, circumstances, personal combinations, and our own spiritual condition can have an effect on the appearance and even length of the delay. Just as in a plane when the captain comes on the intercom and says we have been delayed, we must sit down and wait for the soon approaching release to continue our journey. Complaining, getting impatient, and other normal human responses will not clear the path ahead any faster. We must realize this in our spiritual life as well. We must treat both events the same way. When God puts us in a “holding pattern” we must sit back down and find a way to occupy ourselves until He says it is clear to proceed.

God has our itinerary in his heart. He knows the time for all things. We must take the journey one step at a time until we get to the other end. Delays and lay overs will occur from time to time. As they do we must sit back and allow God to clear the path even if that clearance must first occur in our own heart. When we allow this, we can then finish our journey safely and exactly on time based on the schedule of God. Just as in a plane, if we try to move ahead even while being delayed we take the future path at our own peril. This is especially true since we are now working on our schedule and not the captain’s. Moving ahead through a delay means that we are putting ourselves and perhaps others at risk. Spiritually it is the same. When we push through a delay that God has imposed on our journey, we take His mission at our speed. In short we take God out of the equation. His protection has to be lifted and we are at our own peril. We, the mission, and perhaps others can be put at risk.

Pushing ahead of God is not worth the risk of negative results. Our completion of a mission assigned by God means that one day we will have to answer for the outcome of that mission. We will have to stand before Him and give an account. If God is going to slow me down, then I would rather  stand before Him and say that I completed the task to the point that I could when He stopped me. That demonstrates I have done the best that  I could with what He gave me. I do not want to stand before Him having run on ahead of Him. This demonstrates that I have used His mission to my own design not His.

So the next time that a plane’s captain, or God through prayer, says that there is going to be a delay, sit back, find a good book and occupy your space until you have been released. Whether practical or spiritual it is the safest and most efficient choice.

These writings are part of the personal thoughts and teachings of Bishop A. D. Chafins, Network President and Chief Executive Officer of SIBN. If you like what you have read let others know of this location. Writings will be updated on an ongoing basis.