A New Thing is Coming
It usually doesn’t rain here in southern California, so when it does, we are completely unprepared. We had a storm come through this week, and I had to search my entire apartment for something other than flip-flops to wear. I’m embarrassed to admit I was soaked each time I left the house because I don’t even own an umbrella. I was angry and cursed the rain, but here in southern California, rain is a blessing.
Those of us who are used to living in a drought don’t know what to do when showered with life-giving rain. It reminds me of a scene in the Bible where Jesus travels back to His hometown. He preached there but was unable to do any miracles because His own people rejected Him (Matthew 13:53-58).
Imagine praying to see the Messiah your entire life, but you’ve been without for so long that when He comes you don’t even recognize Him. You’ve missed your promise.
God is always willing and able to do a new thing in us, to give us new blessings. The question remains – “shall we know it?” (Isaiah 43:19)
Don’t Miss Your New Thing
I’ve made it my goal to not miss any good thing God has for me this year, and I’d love for you to join me. Here are a few reminders I wrote down to avoid cursing the rain again:
1. Always pursue the Gift-giver.
If we are supposed to recognize the blessings being thrown our way, we have to know the One throwing them. God gives of His nature, so His gifts will look just like Him. When we get to know Him, we become familiar with His promises. We’ll gladly accept a good thing if we know it comes from our good, good Father.
2. Prepare with expectancy.
Faith without works is dead. Our actions should line up with the hope we release in our prayers.
As 1 John 5:14 reads, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.” If we believe the truth in this scripture, we would already be preparing to receive the things we’ve asked of Him. As we await His promises each day, there’s no way we’ll miss them.
3. Trust in His plan.
Isaiah 55 says that God’s ways are higher than our ways. Oftentimes, we reject our promise because it looks physically different than we imagined. I think that was the case with those who rejected Jesus in Nazareth. If we trust the Lord and follow His leading, we’ll be confident to accept His promises knowing He sketched out each detail with the purpose of glorifying the Father.
So, What’s the Play Call?
It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been in a drought, rain will come.
Study God’s promises and prepare to receive all that He has for you.
