Divine Delays

[bluidkiti]

Divine Delays by Joel Osteen

I heard a story about a young couple in Los Angeles that was moving out of their apartment complex, and as they were going down the elevator with their mattress, the elevator quit working. They were stuck. They called the front desk and waited and waited. An hour later, they were finally able to get out. They were carrying the mattress toward their truck when they heard some commotion up above. They looked up and a three-year-old boy was playing on the balcony railing on the third story, very dangerous. They tried to get his attention to get him to go back in, but he wouldn't listen. They were so alarmed that they rushed over with their mattress and put it underneath where the boy was playing. In a few seconds, this little boy fell off the third-story balcony and landed right on their mattress unharmed. He was autistic and couldn't hear what they were saying.

The scripture says, "A sparrow doesn't fall to the ground without God knowing about it," a little bird. How much more is God concerned about you, about your family? You're His most prized possession.

It says in scripture that God goes before us. He knows how to get us to the right place at the right time. Sometimes that means He has to slow us down. That elevator not working properly was a divine delay. That was God causing it to malfunction to put those people at the right place at the right time.

You can be assured that God will be there to watch over you. He'll even be there when you make mistakes, when you get off course. He doesn't say, "I'll go before you and protect you if you perform perfectly, if you never get on that third-story balcony and do something foolish." No, God loves you unconditionally. He knows we're going to make mistakes. In His great mercy, He'll be right there to help you get back on course! Even when you don't understand, trust that He is leading you. When things don't happen your way, just say, "Thank You, God, for Your Divine delay!"

"The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you…" (2 Peter 3:9, NIV)