Our family has been reading through the Bible in a year, and we’re nearing the finish line! I can’t say I’ve spent extensive time in the minor prophets, which is where we are now. It’s fairly gloomy. But yesterday I read something that seemed quite timely, from Micah 5:2, 4:
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me
one who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,
from ancient times.”
He will stand and shepherd his flock
in the strength of the Lord,
in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they will live securely, for then his greatness
will reach to the ends of the earth.
What amazes me is that this was written more than 400 years before Jesus was born. And it hit me – God’s timing is definitely different than ours. It says in 2 Peter 3:9 that God is not slow in keeping His promises, as some understand slowness. I must understand slowness not like God then because 400 years is not my idea of a quick answer to prayer. Really, it was even longer than that for the Israelites who were waiting for a Savior.
But I believe He came at just the right time. I guess that gives me hope, today, when I think about the things I wait for. I haven’t had to wait anywhere close to a long time for an answer to prayer, relative to the Israelites, but it can be difficult just the same. We pray, we hope, we wait, we are tempted to despair. But God’s timing is good. Keep waiting. Salvation is coming.
