Dear Grace Family,

 

One. Two. Three. Four. Five.   How different might our lives look if we paused just five short minutes before we did something we can’t take back? Time is powerful and precious, but we so often use it with careless disregard. Running fearfully into (or from) a situation that is not ours to manage.

Horatio Nelson, one of the greatest officers in the history of the Royal Navy said “Time is everything; five minutes makes the difference between victory and defeat.”  He should know having had a reputation for remarkable military victories, culminating in the Battle of Trafalgar where he was killed in his moment of triumph.

If we pause just five minutes before we make the most important decisions of our lives, do we truly change the course of our destiny or is everything pretty much pre-determined?  If it were, we wouldn’t be given the gift of choice.  We all have crossroads.

And not just in the big things like turning away from thoughts of suicide or divorce, reaching for a bottle of pills or booze, but also in small ways like thoughtlessly saying something we can’t unsay, yelling at our irritating child for some small infraction, or grabbing that extra helping of ice cream.  What residual affect can those thoughtless actions have? Taking a beat not only keeps us from doing something tragic or stupid to ourselves, it also stops the painful ripple effect of our actions on those around us.

God has instructed us to wait for a reason.  Psalm 27:14 says “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!”  Stopping ourselves from acting without thought and allowing God a moment to instruct increases and strengthens our faith in Him.  We are saying “I trust you God.  Show me Your will.” Abdicating our control over a situation brings the peace of knowing we have His ‘go-ahead’ when we do move. And being in His will, is indescribable.

Because we are such fickle and changeable creatures that five minutes may give us a perspective about a situation that we don’t need hours or years to gain.  Biblically, waiting is an active verb indicating that “to wait” is to be aware through all of the senses of what is occurring around us and discerning the right time to do the next thing.  We all have Holy Spirit discernment the moment we give our lives to Christ, and that gift is not designed to grow stale or be unused.

Isaiah 40:31 contains an amazing promise when we’re feeling our most overwhelmed.  “They who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, run and not be weary, walk and not faint.”  That’s not a physical manifestation but a supernatural strength that is beyond what our bodies are capable of in the natural. And it is the opportunity to practice a self-control that is Godly and biblical.

One. Two. Three. Four. Five….  steps into God’s will.  Not much when compared to the 41,000,000 minutes we will likely be on this earth.  I think we can give God that.