“God is aware of everything you’re going through. Although there are moments in your life that appear as if God’s time is taking a long time, remember God always comes through on time in every situation you encounter in life. God’s timing and your obedience to follow Him is linked to your victory! At those times when it appears that God is taking too long He may in fact be training you to accomplish His specific purpose for you.”
This is the third of 6 posts on God’s Training Program Each post includes excerpts from the the YouVersion “God Comes Through On Time” Reading Plan provided to YouVersion by Kennetra A. Bryant, Ed.D. You can find the complete Bible Plan and Discussion Questions at BRYANT EDUCATIONAL PLANNING & CONSULTING.
God Prepares His People Through His Divine Training Program
The Bible tells us that God’s purpose for those who believe in His Son is to conform us to His Son’s image.
Romans 8:28-30 (NLT)28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.29 For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.30 And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory.
He also has a specific purpose for each one of us because through the Holy Spirit he has given each of us spiritual gifts.
Ephesians 4:11-13 (NLT)11 Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers.
12 Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.13 This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.
1 Corinthians 12:7-11 (NLT)7 A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.8 To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge.9 The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing.10 He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said.11 It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.
In order to effectively use the gifts we need training. Training is required in order for us to perform in any position and any capacity It doesn’t matter whether it’s in business, government, the military, non-profit organizations, or the church. It doesn’t matter if it’s the physical or spiritual world, training is necessary for successful performance.
This is the third of 6 posts on God’s Training Program Each post includes excerpts from the the YouVersion “God Comes Through On Time” Reading Plan provided to YouVersion by Kennetra A. Bryant, Ed.D. You can find the complete Bible Plan and Discussion Questions at BRYANT EDUCATIONAL PLANNING & CONSULTING.
God Prepares His People Through His Divine Training Program
The Bible tells us that God’s purpose for those who believe in His Son is to conform us to His Son’s image.
Romans 8:28-30 (NLT)28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.29 For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.30 And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory.
He also has a specific purpose for each one of us because through the Holy Spirit he has given each of us spiritual gifts.
Ephesians 4:11-13 (NLT)11 Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers.
12 Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.13 This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.
1 Corinthians 12:7-11 (NLT)7 A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.8 To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge.9 The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing.10 He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said.11 It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.
In order to effectively use the gifts we need training. Training is required in order for us to perform in any position and any capacity It doesn’t matter whether it’s in business, government, the military, non-profit organizations, or the church. It doesn’t matter if it’s the physical or spiritual world, training is necessary for successful performance.
“TIMELY ENCOURAGEMENT”
During the time of your Training Program God encourages you to complete the training.
Life’s challenging obstacles can cause us to feel overwhelmed with heartache, sadness, and despair. During these challenging experiences in our lives, it is vital that we draw close to God so He will draw close to us. Although you face troubles, remember that God, our heavenly, all-knowing Father, knew what you would encounter before the foundations of the earth were laid.
That unpleasant, life-changing experience you faced might’ve been a shock to you, but God knew about that before He created you and He already set up an internal encouragement system within you to assist you during difficult times, when you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal LORD and Savior. Despite the setbacks, detours, and pit stops you face, remember that God has a purpose for you that will be fulfilled.
In scripture, David experienced a devastating, overwhelming event. David returned home with his men only to find that the Amalekites raided and burned his land with fire and took captive the women and children. David and the people who were with him wept until they were too exhausted to weep any more, and the people with David spoke of stoning him.
1 Samuel 30:1-6 (NLT)1 Three days later, when David and his men arrived home at their town of Ziklag, they found that the Amalekites had made a raid into the Negev and Ziklag; they had crushed Ziklag and burned it to the ground.2 They had carried off the women and children and everyone else but without killing anyone.3 When David and his men saw the ruins and realized what had happened to their families,4 they wept until they could weep no more.5 David’s two wives, Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal from Carmel, were among those captured.6 David was now in great danger because all his men were very bitter about losing their sons and daughters, and they began to talk of stoning him. But David found strength in the LORD his God.
Everyone was affected and in distress, but God came through in timely encouragement. Remember David had a relationship with God; David was a worshiper and a man after God’s own heart. So even in the midst of distress, the scripture states that David felt strengthened and encouraged in the LORD His God and sought God’s direction regarding his troubles and David recovered all that the enemy stole from him.
After David encouraged himself in God, I believe he was able to inquire of God’s direction because he had faith and witnessed God’s provision, protection, and promises performed in the past and knew without a doubt that God would come through for him.
1 Samuel 30:7-8 (NLT)7 Then he said to Abiathar the priest, “Bring me the ephod!” So Abiathar brought it.8 Then David asked the LORD, “Should I chase after this band of raiders? Will I catch them?” And the LORD told him, “Yes, go after them. You will surely recover everything that was taken from you!”
You’ve probably experienced a situation similar to David when your steps were ordered to return to a place and everything was totally out of your control, individuals connected to you were negatively impacted and their actions and words indicated that they wanted to get rid of you!
1 Samuel 30:16-20 (NLT)16 So he led David to them, and they found the Amalekites spread out across the fields, eating and drinking and dancing with joy because of the vast amount of plunder they had taken from the Philistines and the land of Judah.17 David and his men rushed in among them and slaughtered them throughout that night and the entire next day until evening. None of the Amalekites escaped except 400 young men who fled on camels.18 David got back everything the Amalekites had taken, and he rescued his two wives.19 Nothing was missing: small or great, son or daughter, nor anything else that had been taken. David brought everything back.20 He also recovered all the flocks and herds, and his men drove them ahead of the other livestock. “This plunder belongs to David!” they said.
Let this be encouragement to you that no matter the situation you are facing or have faced, allow God’s encouragement system to kick in (The Holy Spirit) and inquire of Him at all times regarding your route of divine recovery. God comes through on time for you!
John 14:26 (NLT)26 But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.
Psalm 32:8-9 (NLT)8 The LORD says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.9 Do not be like a senseless horse or mule that needs a bit and bridle to keep it under control.”
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