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Why do we never seem to find the right time to meet with God?
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It was Saturday morning, and I was excited to get some writing done. My wife had a work shift over lunch, so I headed to a coffee shop to write.
The first coffee shop I came to was busier than normal. Most of the seating was taken, and a long line stretched from the register. I decided to turn my car around and go to another shop half a mile down the road. As I approached, I saw all of their parking spots were full. This coffee shop was even smaller than the last, which didn’t bode well.
Turning around one more time, I traveled a mile in the opposite direction to a third coffee shop. Again I was met with a completely full lot. I voiced my complaint with the Almighty. C’mon, Lord! What’s the deal?
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Preparing to meet with God
Sometimes when it comes to spending time with God, I feel the same way. Lord, I really want to spend time with you, I tell Him. So I look or wait for the perfect moment—not too busy, not too loud, not too inconvenient.
If we wait for the perfect moment to spend time with God, we’ll be waiting forever.
Our desire for peace in God’s presence is good, but we often believe the lie that we need to create peace rather than God. Let me ask: Do you believe you have to prepare yourself to be with God, or do you believe that He’s already prepared Himself to be with you?
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That’s really what the incarnation is all about—God breaking the rules so He could relate to us face-to-face. The Law that once kept people from God was important for a time because it taught us that God is holy and we are not. But when Christ came, God showed His plan from all time to meet a broken people in our stressed, busy, noisy lives.
God isn’t asking you to have it all together before you come to Him. He’s not waiting for the perfect moment to meet with you. He’s just waiting to meet with you.
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If we wait for the perfect moment to spend time with God, we’ll be waiting forever.
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Finding peace with God this week
I parked on the street and came into the coffee shop. There was a line, and most spots were taken. But I started writing. I had to surrender my idea of a perfect day so I could spend time actually writing.
The question is this: Are we more devoted to our idyllic idea of time with God than we are to God? Are we willing to come to God in the middle of our fractured lives?
At multiple times in the Gospel accounts, Jesus either speaks peace to a storm or steps into the boat and the storm ceases. For us to wait for the storm to calm before Jesus steps into our boat is to misunderstand Christ. The storm ceases not because He gives peace but because “He Himself is our peace” (Ephesians 2:14).
So invite God into your noisy, messy life. Maybe it means you don’t get to spend as much time with God as you’d like before the next responsibility comes. Maybe it means you have to sit with God in the middle of the noise. Don’t find time for God; make time for Him.
I invite you to trade your expectations for expectancy. Lay down the idea of a perfect time with God and begin to expect God to meet you where you are. Invite the Prince of Peace into your life, and watch the storm in your heart subside.
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