Editor's note: Enjoy today's devotion from Devotions from the Beach.
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The Lord is not slow to fulfill His promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. — 2 Peter 3:9 ESV
Inexperienced surfers may watch professionals out in the water, lying on their surfboards and letting wave after wave go by. Why didn’t he take that one? It looked ideal for a great surf. Surely he missed out on that one.
Then the surfer-pro starts to paddle with his hands and positions his surfboard. The perfect wave has come, and he rides it in powerfully and with such grace that the bystanders stand in awe, gaping at the skill and timing on display.
Of course, professional surfers know how to judge the status of the wind and the water so they know the right time to take a wave. Regular beach visitors lack the skills and experience to gauge these things.
In the same way, we might look around us at the status of the world and think, Jesus, right about now would be a good time for You to come back. We complain, maybe even challenge God, saying He is late or failing to keep His promise.
- But God gauges the conditions better than anyone.
He knows the right time to bring on the new creation and wipe away every tear. He patiently waits so all have the chance to be saved. Our role is to pray, trust, and spread the gospel, because as sure as the waves roll in every day, Jesus is coming back. He might not ride in on a wave, but we can rest on the guarantee — He will come at the perfect time.
Jesus, give me patience and trust to wait for You faithfully.
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A Patient Place
Your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. — Colossians 3:3–4 NIV
Off the shores of tropical beaches, coral reefs are sturdy and anchored. They form when a polyp, a soft- bodied animal, attaches to the sea floor and multiplies into a colony. These coral families supply limestone to build a hard, protective foundation that grows less than an inch each year. Yet, unlike stone, these oceanic boulders are alive. Coral life — some thorny, some spongy, some treelike— form underwater ecosystems of astonishing beauty and diversity.
Coral reefs provide homes for thousands of sea creatures in their spikes, nooks, polyp forests, and open, stony meadows. The greatest variety of sea life exists in the coral reefs: they are the jungles of the ocean, vibrant and bursting with communities of fish, sea turtles, crustaceans, and microscopic life, even as they appear still and merely decorative.
The pace of the coral reef’s growth — thousands of years — is a picture of patience. It’s a picture we should apply to our own growth as we become the people God made us to be. The fact is, it takes time to achieve the deep and steady maturation that ignites our faith and grows our gifts.
If we surrender to God’s pace and let Him shape us, we flourish with life — life we can share with others as a source of abundance and support.
Jesus, before I hurry to good works, hide my life in Yours and carry me along in patience and steady growth.
Excerpted with permission from Devotions from the Beach, copyright Thomas Nelson.
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Your Turn
Are you good at being patient? Few people are. Today, let’s practice slowing down and letting Jesus do what He’s going to do in the fullness of time. The process may be slow, but it’s so worth it! ~ Devotionals Daily