In the second half of 2024 our church has been digging into some of the post exile Biblical literature. Specifically, we’ve been working through Haggai and Nehemiah. In the first book, God raises up a prophet to exhort the people when enthusiasm is flagging for the Temp le rebuilding project. In the second book, Nehemiah is prompted to lead an expedition back to Jerusalem to work on rebuilding the walls.
There have been lots of lessons to learn, but as we come to the end of the year and do a bit of looking back and looking forward, I’m struck by one particular lesson. God’ is faithful and his timing is perfect. He always shows up, bang on time. This means that when the people are questioning whether or not it is the right time for a temple building project, Haggai insists that it is because it’s God’s time. It means that Nehemiah knows when to go to the king and make his request and that he is able to persevere through opposition. It also means that God fulfils those promises to Jeremiah and Daniel about how long the exile will last.
God’s timing has been perfect in 2024, whether that’s in family life, ministry or the needs of the local church. We can personally testify to that. This means that we can also trust his timing for 2025 as well. Of course, it is perhaps easier to see and say that when plans seem to be coming together. There have been examples of that for us this year, I think particualry for our church we’ve seen people stepping forward into ministry, growing diversity in our leadership and people beginning to ask about baptism. But those things have often come after previous years where it has felt like there have been frustrations and delays. At the same time, there are things I wanted to see more of this year and it has felt like we’ve been delayed and frustrated. I wanted to see people coming forward to pioneer plant. I haven’t. We would have liked our church to have its own building by now. We don’t! Yet seeing how God has been at work in those other areas and seeing how past frustration taught us patience as God prepared for things to come together at just the right time encourages me to trust God on the things where it has felt frustrating.
Whatever next year has in store, we know it will be in God’s plan and his time.
Faithroots 