"The vision will still happen at the appointed time. It hurries toward its goal. It won’t be a lie. If it’s delayed, wait for it. It will certainly happen. It won’t be late." ~Habakkuk 2:3
I opened my birthday card after my sisters had opened theirs, and then I read the dear note that was inside. It said, "I am so proud of the mother that you are." Although those words should have made me swell up with pride, for some reason they had the opposite effect. My beautiful sisters received praise for their accomplishments for where they are in life while I received a "you're a great mother" note. I wondered, "Is that all people see in me?"
I left that day a little discouraged. Don't get me wrong, I love being a mother to my babies. I love experiencing every joy they experience, I love being there to encourage and hold them when life disappoints them, I love going before God in prayer to cover them each day, I love being there to share in their triumphs, and I absolutely love when they shower me with hugs and kisses and "I love you, Mom"! I just did not want the only thing people see in me is the fact that I am a good mom.
What about the gifts God placed in me, do they see them? What about the fact that I am already walking in my gift of encouraging others, do they see that? What about the fact that I am working on some things that they do not even know I am working on? Of course those things do not count because, well, not many people see any of those things. Only a few even know what is going on behind the scenes.
I began to wonder if the things I was doing even mattered. I mean, if God really wanted to use my gifts, it seems as if He would have started using them the day He placed the dreams in my heart and the visions in my mind about how He was going to use me. So, maybe the only thing that was gifted about me was, in fact, the kind of mother I am.
I wrestled with this disappointment for three days. I was confused about whether God really showed me a vision of what I thought would be in my near future, or if I just had a need to feel more adequate and equipped than I really am. Then it hit me, or rather the voice of the Holy Spirit spoke to me. For whatever reason, as I was driving to Charlotte at 3:00 a.m. to catch a 6:30 a.m. flight, I chose to drive that hour and fifteen minutes in silence. It is a good thing I did because had I been listening to music, I may have missed what I needed to hear.
"Walk in the roles you are currently in, work towards the vision I have given you by following my instructions, trust me while I am working behind the scenes...then at the right time, the vision will come to pass".
I guess God could tell that I was not really feeling what had just been spoken, so, again I heard the message being repeated to me. Not once, not twice, but three times this message was spoken. I needed to not just hear it, but I needed to feel it in my spirit.
I know the old folks used to advise us to never question God, but if you are anything like me you present your questions to Him anyway. So, I asked why He would allow me to get so excited by giving me a vision of how He would use me if it was going to take some time for Him to do it. Then, like the steady flow of a brook that runs through a meadow His voice began to give an overflow of answers to questions I had not even asked. I was encouraged to keep expecting to see the vision come to pass as I walk in the current roles of my life that will indeed prepare me as the the dreams He placed in my heart become realities. There are things that need to be gained while the dream is developing, and the visions will be fulfilled, in time.
In time...
There is a time for everything (Ecclesiastes 3:1), even a time to wait. In the waiting period is where God teaches and prepares us to be ready for the destiny that awaits us. Sure, we could probably be somewhat effective by using our gifts before the proper time, but it is really the anointing of God that makes a gift powerful. Only when we allow our gifts to operate under the anointing of God will we be catapulted into our greatest capacity to be perfectly effective for the kingdom and His glory. Unfortunately (if you see it that way), walking under the anointing of God is not something that is perfected without time and circumstances.
Our present roles are exactly the ones we need to be in right now. There are certain things about our current roles that will build the character we need for the roles we will assume later. In our current roles we may be learning discipline, or perseverance, or how to be tender and compassionate, or how to lead, or how to be led. This list could go on and on. The point is that things we learn now will be the very things God uses later as He turns the visions He placed in our dreams into realities.
It is easy to get discouraged about where you are in your life when it seems that everyone around you is advancing to new and higher levels. Do your best not to let someone else's accomplishments make you feel less than. If we stay busy looking around at everyone else's success, it will take that much longer for us to reach our own.
Here's another point: some people will always confine you to the one role they see you "play" best.
You know, kind of how it took a minute to watch Tyler Perry play any other role besides his role as Madea?
It is hard sometimes to break yourself away from a prominent role that you have played for such a long amount of time in life. Don't get bogged down with what other people see in you, especially when we have a Father that knows every single detail of your life and has already predestined a path for you. Even when you step off the path created for you, He always creates a detour. That detour takes you to a longer route, but somehow it provides you with the scenery needed to be wiser when you get to your destination. If my former statement is true, and detours in life really do teach us some valuable lessons, then stepping off the course sometimes is not a detour at all, is it? Sometimes, the detours are necessary.
People always quote Jeremiah 29:11 as if it is a magic formula God created to keep us from finding ourselves in roles that actually can be quite painful. Sure, God knows the plans He has for our lives, and in time they will cause us to prosper; however, sometimes God allows pain and setbacks to be a part of the plan now to put us in position to prosper later.
We have to play certain roles now to gain the wisdom and understanding that we will need later. The truth is that we need to learn many things before God sets us in place to be in some of the roles intended for us.
There were many people in the bible who were chosen by God to fulfill a certain calling but were made to wait until the exact moment that God said, "It is time." So, do not feel slighted that God may have given you a vision ten years ago and you're still waiting for that vision to come to pass. As it is with us, so it was with people in biblical times. I'll give a few examples.
Joseph was a young man sold into slavery by his brothers for a few reasons, but the one I am recalling at this moment is the fact that they did not like the fact that he saw them all bowing to him in visions he had had (Genesis 37:5-9). Those visions had meaning AND did in fact come true, but it would not be until years later after going through some tough times that Joseph would see that vision make its way into reality (Genesis 42:6). By the time the vision came true, Joseph had gone through and learned some things that would ultimately make him the savior of his brothers.
Queen Esther was a young maiden chosen to be the King Xerxes' wife simply because she was beautiful. God had already chosen her to be the one He would use to save His people from being destroyed; however, she did not instantly step into the role of "savior" until the proper time and until some things happened. She had to be groomed into becoming a wife that the king favored before being able to ultimately be in position to petition for her people's lives.
The second most known story of someone called into a role years before he actually assumed it is the story of David. He was the most unlikely of Jesse's sons to be named as King Saul's successor. Yet, He was who God chose. After David was chosen to be the next king of Israel he continued to tend to his father's sheep, fought and killed a Philistine and ran for his life because of King Saul's jealousy and hatred towards him. But, at the proper time he stepped into his role as king and was the second most famous king of Israel to ever rule.
This brings us to the most famous King of of all, Jesus Christ. Talk about the One who had the greatest role of all being made to wait until the proper time to be revealed to everyone and walk the path to his destiny. Jesus came into this world as the human son of Mary and her carpenter husband Joseph. He had to experience childhood, being a teenager and even a great amount of time as an adult before publicly walking in His destiny. To all who knew him, He was just the carpenter from Nazareth. To most he was an everyday man who, by many standards, would be considered ordinary and nothing special. Jesus walked through each of his roles graciously and patiently waited for the time to come for him to known as the Son of God. I imagine He did chores as directed by His mother, and we even know there was a time that He was a little mouthy with His mother (Luke 49:49-51). In each of these roles, as Jesus grew into an adult, He grew in wisdom and obtained God's favor and the favor of man (Luke 49:52). Jesus had to assume each role he "played' until stepping into the role of Savior of The World so that He could be a living example of the message He came to give and the message He came to be.
Wait...there's an order to this role playing thing?
Look at the order in which Luke describes the things that took place before Jesus began His public ministry. First He grew in wisdom. Then, He grew in God's favor. Lastly, He grew in favor with man.
Maybe we really are not supposed to step directly into our destinies before we are wise enough. Maybe before we consider needing people to trust that we are able to be more than what they see now we have to be diligent in showing God He can trust us to humbly walk in the vision He will make real later. It just might be that until we seek to gain wisdom and the trust of God, others will not be able to recognize anything else in us besides what they see now.
There are so many things God is making clear to me as I am preparing this blog to share with you.
I am learning to be perfectly fine playing the roles I currently hold. These roles are refining me now, making me better now and equipping me with what I need to be most effective for the roles I will play later.
I am learning that the roles I play now are the exact ones God has ordained me to play until He says it is time for me to step into other roles later.
I am learning that there is an order that must be followed now before I am truly ready to be placed in the roles I am to play later.
So, I will proudly accept the compliments given to me about the mother that I am. I will learn the things that are necessary for me to learn as I am moving towards my destiny. I will play each role I am in now, all for the glory of God, while I wait to pick up new roles later.
Today, know that in time, as you continue to grow into who you are supposed to be, you will step into every role meant for you at just the right time. Let God work in you and perfect the gifts He gave you now, then others will have no choice but to see who God has called you to be later.
I left that day a little discouraged. Don't get me wrong, I love being a mother to my babies. I love experiencing every joy they experience, I love being there to encourage and hold them when life disappoints them, I love going before God in prayer to cover them each day, I love being there to share in their triumphs, and I absolutely love when they shower me with hugs and kisses and "I love you, Mom"! I just did not want the only thing people see in me is the fact that I am a good mom.
What about the gifts God placed in me, do they see them? What about the fact that I am already walking in my gift of encouraging others, do they see that? What about the fact that I am working on some things that they do not even know I am working on? Of course those things do not count because, well, not many people see any of those things. Only a few even know what is going on behind the scenes.
I began to wonder if the things I was doing even mattered. I mean, if God really wanted to use my gifts, it seems as if He would have started using them the day He placed the dreams in my heart and the visions in my mind about how He was going to use me. So, maybe the only thing that was gifted about me was, in fact, the kind of mother I am.
I wrestled with this disappointment for three days. I was confused about whether God really showed me a vision of what I thought would be in my near future, or if I just had a need to feel more adequate and equipped than I really am. Then it hit me, or rather the voice of the Holy Spirit spoke to me. For whatever reason, as I was driving to Charlotte at 3:00 a.m. to catch a 6:30 a.m. flight, I chose to drive that hour and fifteen minutes in silence. It is a good thing I did because had I been listening to music, I may have missed what I needed to hear.
"Walk in the roles you are currently in, work towards the vision I have given you by following my instructions, trust me while I am working behind the scenes...then at the right time, the vision will come to pass".
I guess God could tell that I was not really feeling what had just been spoken, so, again I heard the message being repeated to me. Not once, not twice, but three times this message was spoken. I needed to not just hear it, but I needed to feel it in my spirit.
I know the old folks used to advise us to never question God, but if you are anything like me you present your questions to Him anyway. So, I asked why He would allow me to get so excited by giving me a vision of how He would use me if it was going to take some time for Him to do it. Then, like the steady flow of a brook that runs through a meadow His voice began to give an overflow of answers to questions I had not even asked. I was encouraged to keep expecting to see the vision come to pass as I walk in the current roles of my life that will indeed prepare me as the the dreams He placed in my heart become realities. There are things that need to be gained while the dream is developing, and the visions will be fulfilled, in time.
In time...
There is a time for everything (Ecclesiastes 3:1), even a time to wait. In the waiting period is where God teaches and prepares us to be ready for the destiny that awaits us. Sure, we could probably be somewhat effective by using our gifts before the proper time, but it is really the anointing of God that makes a gift powerful. Only when we allow our gifts to operate under the anointing of God will we be catapulted into our greatest capacity to be perfectly effective for the kingdom and His glory. Unfortunately (if you see it that way), walking under the anointing of God is not something that is perfected without time and circumstances.
Our present roles are exactly the ones we need to be in right now. There are certain things about our current roles that will build the character we need for the roles we will assume later. In our current roles we may be learning discipline, or perseverance, or how to be tender and compassionate, or how to lead, or how to be led. This list could go on and on. The point is that things we learn now will be the very things God uses later as He turns the visions He placed in our dreams into realities.
It is easy to get discouraged about where you are in your life when it seems that everyone around you is advancing to new and higher levels. Do your best not to let someone else's accomplishments make you feel less than. If we stay busy looking around at everyone else's success, it will take that much longer for us to reach our own.
Here's another point: some people will always confine you to the one role they see you "play" best.
You know, kind of how it took a minute to watch Tyler Perry play any other role besides his role as Madea?
It is hard sometimes to break yourself away from a prominent role that you have played for such a long amount of time in life. Don't get bogged down with what other people see in you, especially when we have a Father that knows every single detail of your life and has already predestined a path for you. Even when you step off the path created for you, He always creates a detour. That detour takes you to a longer route, but somehow it provides you with the scenery needed to be wiser when you get to your destination. If my former statement is true, and detours in life really do teach us some valuable lessons, then stepping off the course sometimes is not a detour at all, is it? Sometimes, the detours are necessary.
People always quote Jeremiah 29:11 as if it is a magic formula God created to keep us from finding ourselves in roles that actually can be quite painful. Sure, God knows the plans He has for our lives, and in time they will cause us to prosper; however, sometimes God allows pain and setbacks to be a part of the plan now to put us in position to prosper later.
We have to play certain roles now to gain the wisdom and understanding that we will need later. The truth is that we need to learn many things before God sets us in place to be in some of the roles intended for us.
There were many people in the bible who were chosen by God to fulfill a certain calling but were made to wait until the exact moment that God said, "It is time." So, do not feel slighted that God may have given you a vision ten years ago and you're still waiting for that vision to come to pass. As it is with us, so it was with people in biblical times. I'll give a few examples.
Joseph was a young man sold into slavery by his brothers for a few reasons, but the one I am recalling at this moment is the fact that they did not like the fact that he saw them all bowing to him in visions he had had (Genesis 37:5-9). Those visions had meaning AND did in fact come true, but it would not be until years later after going through some tough times that Joseph would see that vision make its way into reality (Genesis 42:6). By the time the vision came true, Joseph had gone through and learned some things that would ultimately make him the savior of his brothers.
Queen Esther was a young maiden chosen to be the King Xerxes' wife simply because she was beautiful. God had already chosen her to be the one He would use to save His people from being destroyed; however, she did not instantly step into the role of "savior" until the proper time and until some things happened. She had to be groomed into becoming a wife that the king favored before being able to ultimately be in position to petition for her people's lives.
The second most known story of someone called into a role years before he actually assumed it is the story of David. He was the most unlikely of Jesse's sons to be named as King Saul's successor. Yet, He was who God chose. After David was chosen to be the next king of Israel he continued to tend to his father's sheep, fought and killed a Philistine and ran for his life because of King Saul's jealousy and hatred towards him. But, at the proper time he stepped into his role as king and was the second most famous king of Israel to ever rule.
This brings us to the most famous King of of all, Jesus Christ. Talk about the One who had the greatest role of all being made to wait until the proper time to be revealed to everyone and walk the path to his destiny. Jesus came into this world as the human son of Mary and her carpenter husband Joseph. He had to experience childhood, being a teenager and even a great amount of time as an adult before publicly walking in His destiny. To all who knew him, He was just the carpenter from Nazareth. To most he was an everyday man who, by many standards, would be considered ordinary and nothing special. Jesus walked through each of his roles graciously and patiently waited for the time to come for him to known as the Son of God. I imagine He did chores as directed by His mother, and we even know there was a time that He was a little mouthy with His mother (Luke 49:49-51). In each of these roles, as Jesus grew into an adult, He grew in wisdom and obtained God's favor and the favor of man (Luke 49:52). Jesus had to assume each role he "played' until stepping into the role of Savior of The World so that He could be a living example of the message He came to give and the message He came to be.
Wait...there's an order to this role playing thing?
Look at the order in which Luke describes the things that took place before Jesus began His public ministry. First He grew in wisdom. Then, He grew in God's favor. Lastly, He grew in favor with man.
Maybe we really are not supposed to step directly into our destinies before we are wise enough. Maybe before we consider needing people to trust that we are able to be more than what they see now we have to be diligent in showing God He can trust us to humbly walk in the vision He will make real later. It just might be that until we seek to gain wisdom and the trust of God, others will not be able to recognize anything else in us besides what they see now.
There are so many things God is making clear to me as I am preparing this blog to share with you.
I am learning to be perfectly fine playing the roles I currently hold. These roles are refining me now, making me better now and equipping me with what I need to be most effective for the roles I will play later.
I am learning that the roles I play now are the exact ones God has ordained me to play until He says it is time for me to step into other roles later.
I am learning that there is an order that must be followed now before I am truly ready to be placed in the roles I am to play later.
So, I will proudly accept the compliments given to me about the mother that I am. I will learn the things that are necessary for me to learn as I am moving towards my destiny. I will play each role I am in now, all for the glory of God, while I wait to pick up new roles later.
Today, know that in time, as you continue to grow into who you are supposed to be, you will step into every role meant for you at just the right time. Let God work in you and perfect the gifts He gave you now, then others will have no choice but to see who God has called you to be later.