God’s timing, God’s plans
As I sit here in my dad’s hospice room on the cusp of Holy Week, many things are rolling around in my head and in my heart. Obviously, I have a basic overlay of grief and sorrow. Infused into that are unsurprisingly disappointment, frustration, and perhaps some anger. Additionally, there are some warm feelings brought about by precious memories. Perhaps finally, for me, there is a both intellectual and spiritual curiosity – the desire to understand, especially to understand why. I’m sure you’ve all felt these very same feelings, perhaps recently.
Over the last couple of weeks, my mother has regularly said an oft spoken idea, “God’s timing is perfect.” I’ve heard this same brought into conversation in challenging moments, especially when patience is required. Let’s think about God’s timing together.
First, there is no Scripture that states unequivocally this understanding of God’s timing. Ecclesiastes 3:1 does say, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter (purpose) under heaven.” The writer then goes on to list fourteen antithetical pairs of activities or events that humans do or that happen to us, from the most basic (birth and death), to much more controversial (war and peace). In Jeremiah 29:11a, God says, “For surely I know the plans I have for you.” And, in Proverbs 16:9, “The human mind plans the way, but God directs the steps.” Yet, there is no precise Scripture stating, “God’s timing is perfect.”
Since we are moving into Holy Week as I write, I’m also thinking about Jesus’ experiences from Palm Sunday to Good Friday. I find myself wondering, do you think the humanity of Jesus thought that divine timing was perfect as he prayed in Gethsemane, “Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me.” My humanity resonates with Jesus in this moment. “God, stop it! Don’t make this happen in this way on this day.”
Unlike Jesus, I can’t easily move to submitting to God’s will. “I’m not ready. Remove this cup.” And yet, Dad says he is ready. God’s timing is perfect?
On top of all of this, I’ve been thinking about my own reappointment. God’s timing. Am I ready? Are you? Is it time for our paths to diverge? In this, I find myself more able to say, “Not what I want, but what you want.” I can perhaps recognize that there is “a time to break down, and a time to build up.” While I can’t see the plans God has for us, with Jeremiah, I am confident that those plans exist. And moreover that those “plans are for [my] welfare and not for harm, to give [me] a future with hope.”
In our lives, we WILL have experiences where we will wish and pray that, “the cup could be removed from us,” that we wouldn’t have to go through that experience. We wouldn’t have to watch a loved one suffer or suffer ourselves. As I have said to you, God goes with us through all of these experiences. God joins us on the journey. Open yourselves to God’s presence and God’s leading.
If you have ideas for our Year of Justice or if you have questions, comments, or concerns about my reappointment or anything else, please email pastorsteveepworth@gmail.com or connect with me on Facebook or call or text my cell phone 612-708-2466.
Blessings,
Pastor Steve
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