As I was making breakfast for my children one morning, I had this thought about God’s timing.  Each time I make a meal for my kids, I often get asked “Is breakfast ready? When will breakfast be ready?  I’m hungry.  How much longer?”  The impatience slowly kicks in as I scramble the eggs, wash the fruit, toast the bread, and prepare the plates.  I have my kids in mind as I’m preparing their breakfast and in fact, they are quite possibly the main thing I’m thinking about the entire time, but there’s a process.  If you want to have a nutritious meal, it takes time. You can get a bowl of cereal or grab a breakfast bar, but the nutrition is lacking.  It may taste good for a moment, but it doesn’t positively impact your health for that day.  It’s better to start your day with eggs and fresh fruit than it is to grab a bowl of sugar, I mean cereal. 🙂 I joke, but you get the point.  My kids get impatient with the timing, but what they don’t see is that the pan has to get hot before I put the eggs on it.  What they don’t see is that the fruit is being cleansed of pesticides while sitting in the bowl, the bread is sitting in the toaster, the eggs are scrambled, but I’m waiting for the pan to get to the right temperature.  There is a process in the timing of breakfast. 

While I know this may sound trivial and maybe even silly to some, there’s a point.  Our kids may look up from their toys and see that I’m just standing there staring at a pan, but they didn’t catch all the things I’ve already prepared for breakfast.  They think I’m just standing around, but the pan is heating.  The eggs are scrambled and starting to cook.  I hear again “Is it ready yet? I’m hungry”.  We get impatient.  The kids told me they were hungry, they made their request for breakfast, and now they have to wait for breakfast to be made.  It takes time, it’s not instant.  They can get instant gratification from cereal, but it won’t provide the same benefits as a fresh cooked meal.  We’re impatient with timing that doesn’t parallel our desires.  

I was greatly convicted as my annoyance with my children rose.  I felt in my spirit that God was telling me that this is what it’s like for him when I get impatient in his timing.  I make my request to God and I wait.  I make my request to God and I wonder if he heard me, if he’s doing anything while I sit and wait for him to move.  I start to question God, little by little.  “God, did you hear me? I asked you for this and I haven’t heard anything.  Are you doing anything or are just staring at the pan?  I see food, but nothing looks ready yet.  Have you washed the fruit?  Is it ready yet?  Did you hear me? Will you provide? I’m hungry.”  One thing I know, God is always working.  Even when I can’t see it or feel his hand on something, I know he’s working behind the scenes.  I’m waiting for the meal, not thinking God’s doing anything, but He’s preparing the eggs.  God may be washing the fruit, and I think he’s not listening.  My kids look up from playing, assuming I’m not working fast enough, but the timing of the meal is thought out.  The eggs don’t just show up on the plate without first being cooked.  The fruit is better when it’s washed, rather than straight from the container.  The process is important, yet we want the results as fast as we can.  

God’s timing is perfect.  Scripture hammers that point time and time again.  While we may think we know what is best, especially when we are hungry, God knows what is perfect.  I often remind myself that “In all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose.”  Romans 8:28  So while I may be frustrated at his timing or silence, I have to remind myself that if God is working, I know it’s going to be for my good.  His timing is perfect.  “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working”.  John 5:17

You may be walking through a season of wondering why God hasn’t moved yet.  God put it on your heart, but the pieces haven’t fallen into place.  You’re opening His word, making your requests known to him, honoring Him with your life, but you haven’t seen the fruit.  You see the plate, but there’s no food.  Remember, while we may not understand His process or timing, God is moving.  “But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day.  The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness.  Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”.  2 Peter 3:8-9