A long time ago now, I found myself faced with a dilemma. After some time and a bit of rather flippant prayer, a solution presented itself that looked perfect. I didn’t even hesitate but went right on ahead, assuming this was from the Lord.
And, while I do believe the Lord was in control and knew exactly what He was doing, the decision didn’t turn out to be anything like I planned and life become a bit rocky for awhile there. I believe learning through this careless decision was part of God’s purpose and I did learn some hard lessons through the process.
This situation was brought to mind this morning as I read I Samuel 8. The Israelites think they want a king. And, while Samuel assures them they most certainly should not want this, predicting all the negative changes that will come to their lives—they insist.
Because they thought they knew best.
Just like the Israelites, I was desperate for a solution and thought I knew best. Rather than lean on the Lord and wait on His timing, I went right ahead and did what I thought looked right and would ease my burden.
But when we move ahead without God, our burdens aren’t eased. They are multiplied. As we move further on into Samuel, we will find that Israel moving on without God’s approval was costly. Just as I found out the same thing.
Making decisions and solving problems can be a difficult thing in this life. But I am learning that I need to submit myself to God’s will and wait on Him when I am faced with a dilemma. I am still learning to pray more comprehensively and more deeply about things; to pray with a more eternal perspective rather than a desperate “make my life easier” plea.
Israel wanted a quick fix and they thought that quick fix was a King. I wanted a quick fix and thought I knew what that was.
Both Israel and myself paid when we went that route. It’s a good reminder that we must seek the Lord and wait on Him. What does He desire for us?
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘖𝘙𝘋 𝘪𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘪𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘪𝘮, 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘬𝘦𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘪𝘮. 𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘦𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘢𝘪𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘭𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘖𝘙𝘋. (Lamentations 3:25-26)
It’s good to seek the Lord and it’s good to wait on Him but this is NOT always an easy thing to do. Especially for those of us who just want resolution. The waiting is so hard and the temptation to just jump ahead with our own solution is a great one.
Oh, that we may continue to learn to seek the Lord and to wait on His timing. I have a feeling it will be a lifelong challenge to fully learn this important truth!
AMEN!