One of the joys of ministry is seeing people come to know Christ: to see the light of Christ shining in their lives for the first time and to see sheep who were wandering enter or re-enter the fold.
Then there are those who you are cheering for, but it seems it’s always one step forward, two steps back. You pray, you reach out, and disappointment sets in.
“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9
But God. Don’t you love those two words? God is faithful. He is not slow. He is working. We pray and we wait for what seems like an eternity. We wait for the rebel to repent, for the wayward child to return home, and for the broken to be reconciled. We wait impatiently, but God is patient and He is not slow.
We were having dinner with a godly, older couple from our church recently. While listening to their faith stories, the husband shared that he had walked away from the Lord for a decade or so. A decade?! Even as a 40 year-old who has been in ministry for the last 14 years, a decade seems so long. In the midst of the waiting it feels slow, but the Lord is not slow and His timing is truly perfect.
So let us pray. Let us faithfully reach out to those who are broken, those who are hurting, and the wayward ones. Let us trust in “Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think” (Eph. 3:20).
Thank you for this Jennifer! That story is so encouraging and challenging. I get impatient when I have to “wait” on God for a few weeks; let alone a decade! I needed this reminder today.
Amen! My husband and I find it discouraging sometimes when we see people not changing fast enough (or at all!). I will be thinking about this concept that God is not slow, but patient for awhile. Thanks for sharing!