Timeless Faith

...For they shall not be ashamed who wait for Me.” Isaiah 49:23b NKJV ...No one who hopes in me ever regrets it.” Isaiah 49:23b MSG I sense that many of God's people are just weary. You've prayed, you've believed, you've been faithful and yet it seems like change is a million miles away. It seems like God is not following through with His promises. 

I want to remind you that God is not quicksand. When you put your trust in Him, He doesn't give way and let you sink. In Him your faith has a sure resting place that does not give way when rain comes and does not disappoint when things look impossible. God does His greatest miracles in impossible situations.

It's crazy how our faith wanes with time. A promise is easy to believe a day, a month, even a year after its been made, it's easy to believe when time is on our side but the true test of faith is believing when it seems like it's too late. 

The true test is trusting God's heart when you can't see his hand, it's trusting His heart when He is silent and everything is falling apart, when He's seemingly nowhere to be found and all you want is a sign that the sun will once again rise on your life.

I just want to give you a little bit of encouragement. I've been going through it! I've been battling with seeing God's heart in the midst of the waiting. As I was in devotion one night, I came across this passage of scripture, 

"For they shall not be ashamed who wait for Me.” It was a rhema word that leapt off of the page and into my heart, stabilising a faith that had been wavering under the scrutiny of time. But Zion said, “I don’t get it. God has left me. My Master has forgotten I even exist.” “Can a mother forget the infant at her breast, walk away from the baby she bore? But even if mothers forget, I’d never forget you—never. Look, I’ve written your names on the backs of my hands. The walls you’re rebuilding are never out of my sight. Your builders are faster than your wreckers. The demolition crews are gone for good. Look up, look around, look well! See them all gathering, coming to you? As sure as I am the living God”— God's Decree— “you’re going to put them on like so much jewelry, you’re going to use them to dress up like a bride. Isaiah 49:14‭-‬18 MSG In the above passage, God was talking to His people who were in captivity in Babylon at the time. Isaiah prophesied their release and God's plan to restore Jerusalem and bring them out of exile.

They were in captivity for decades! Even though Isaiah prophesied their deliverance from exile and the restoration God was going to bring, they grew weary in the waiting. Eventually, they concluded that God had forgotten about them. And isn't that just like us? The promise tarries so we just give up and decide that God has forgotten about us! You know, it's like we think time gets away from God and He's caught off guard by what we did not anticipate. 

But God is not bound by our timelines or our deadlines. He is God. I was listening to a sermon by Evangelist Christine Caine and she said something so simple yet truly astounding. She said, "'impossible' is where God begins". And let me tell you, that one liner blew my mind. As I thought about it, I realised that it was a truth seen all throughout scripture.

It was impossible that Sarah could bear a child in her old age. It was impossible that over 5000 people could be fed from from two fish and five loaves. It was impossible that Lazarus could live again but "impossible" is where God begins. 

Instead of believing in the God Who starts at impossible, we want a clear cut, colour-inside-the-lines "miracle". We want an on-our-time fulfilment of God's promise that requires little to no faith. But what if I told you that God is going for maximum glory in your situation: unshared, unrivaled, it-had-to-be-God glory. God is coming. We just have to believe and wait expectantly for Him to show up. God has not forgotten us. 

Just like a mother won't forget the baby she has borne, God won't forget you nor His promise to you. He even acknowledges the possibility that a mother might forget and He says, even if a mother forgets, "I’d never forget you—never."

Who wouldn't serve a God like that?! Surely! Surely, God will not disappoint! God made a promise to His people and He followed through with it. He made good on His word then and He'll make good on His word to you now.

"The walls you're rebuilding are never out of My sight." 

God is saying, "I see your progress. You're getting somewhere! Your faith is not in vain. The things that held you back before, I'm moving them out of the way and creating a straight path for you! I am restoring your broken places and beautifying you once again. The very thing meant to destroy you will become a testimony of My goodness."

FOR THEY SHALL NOT BE ASHAMED WHO WAIT FOR ME.

I don't know about you but I have a living hope! A hope that does not disappoint! So I will keep believing. 

While I wait for the promise, while I wait for the fulfilment of the prophecy, I will rebuild the walls of my self-esteem, I will rebuild the walls of faithfulness, I will rebuild the walls of holiness, knowing that God's eyes are always on me and even in the hard times, even in times of distress and confinement, His promise still stands. He won't forget me!

And He won't forget you either. 

Let's not be moved by time. God is not caught off guard by our age or confined by the laws of science. His promise is His promise is His promise! Period. If He said it, it is so. When He says it's time, all creation must conform to His command. It's as simple as that.

I love this song by Bethel Music! The lyrics are a reminder of God's unchanging nature! 🎶Your promise still stands, great is your faithfulness. I'm still in Your hands, this is my confidence; you've never failed me yet!🎶

Promise, is that you I see coming over the Himalayas?! I see you coming 'round the mountain! 😂 I'm gonna build until yuh reach! My God is faithful and nothing changes that!

Because you kept on believing, you’ll get what you’re looking forward to: total salvation. 1 Peter 1:8‭-‬9 MSG

In returning and rest you shall be saved; In quietness and confidence shall be your strength. Isaiah 30:15a NKJV