Life’s distractions are among Satan, the devil’s best tactics, for he tries to use distractions to alter God’s timing, but Jesus never allowed satanic distractions to alter God’s timing. In Mark 5:1-20, Jesus got into a boat on the same side of the sea Jairus’ twelve-year old daughter was sick and dying, and where the woman lived that had the twelve-year issue of blood, going to the other side of the sea to expel some 2,000 unclean satanic demons from a man living in a cemetery “crying out and cutting himself with stones”.
Jesus met the demon-possessed man at the perfect time that Satan, in Mark 5:21-43, was trying to speed up the timing Jesus was supposed to heal the lady with the issue of blood and Jairus’ sick child, so they would both die before Jesus got there, but Jesus knew all this had already been included in God’s eternal plan, purpose for every detail of life, long before time began, and the perfect timing for everything to begin and stop; therefore, Jesus knows much more about timing than Satan does, and He always obeys Father God’s plan, purpose, and timing, the way we should.
Satan, the deceiver, tries to keep us distracted, so we become fearful and worry about the purpose for the seasons of suffering as well as the seasons of blessings, for he thinks when we focus our thinking on his distractions and interruptions, we will take our focus off Jesus, our problem solver, for the satanic forces deceive us with the lie that God does not want His children to suffer.
But 1 Peter 5:5-7, 10-11 command God’s children, 5 “Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” 6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, 7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. … 10 But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. 11 To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen”.
God’s timing is always perfect, for Jesus meets people’s needs when they humbly turn it all over to Him and trust Him to do God’s perfect will, God’s way, at God’s time, and we call this TRUST.
But remember trust and fearful worry are two different worlds, so we cannot have both at the same time; therefore, Romans 14:23, assures us “whatever is not from faith is sin”. (Also read Romans 16:25-27 and Titus 1:15-16.)
When we live in humble faith totally trusting Father God, Christ Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, then Christ becomes our worry-free, perfect peace, as promised in Ephesians 2:11-18, from which we understand worry-free, perfect peace comes after the much suffering of 1 Peter 5:10-11, for until we ask Jesus to give us the faith it takes to totally trust Him with praise, thanks, and worship both for everything we go through and for as long as His timing for us to go through what He planned.
Matthew 7:13-14 warns us the “road that leads to eternal life is very narrow and extremely difficult, for we can only travel this road with the Holy Spirit as our Guide, 13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it”.
If, however, we continue suffering with the enjoyment of praise, thanks, and worship to our Lord Jesus, from whom these “sufferings” are part of His plan, purpose, and timing for us to learn His training lessons, then at His predetermined time, He will give us the faith necessary to totally trust Him with worry-free peace, and at the end of this “suffering” He will perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle us”, for we have finally become a mature, worry-free, Holy Spirit guided Christian.
Jim, Kim, and Tim Nabors
