“Do not be seized with alarm and struck with fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom!” Luke 12:32 (Amplified)
The Chinese bamboo plant is a rarity in the plant kingdom. Plant it and for the next five years all you do is water and tend and you will hardly see any encouraging growth that will reward your diligent effort. Yet after this period, it suddenly springs to life and can grow three feet in one twenty four hour period. It therefore goes from zero growth to phenomenal growth, but only at the right time.
There is something about the Chinese bamboo in those God is preparing to undertake significant tasks for the glory of His kingdom. They often labour for a season at the initial stages of their ministry in obscurity before God moves them into the limelight. They get used to deprivation, frustration, and disrespect as God remakes and remould them in the pressure cooker of life’s difficulties in preparation for the glorious end He had envisaged for them.
Significant heroes of faith such as Abraham, Moses, David, Joseph, Paul etc had their faith stretched and challenged, their lives turned upside down and in extreme cases even feared for their lives, as it seemed as if God had not only forsaken, but made a fool out of them. Many of them laboured in faith for many years without receiving a commensurate reward for their faithful efforts, yet they persisted in faith and held on to God. All of them, without exception, had concluded that they had no alternative to God and so held on to His promise with their lives. God used the crucible of trouble to prepare these heroes of faith to reign with Him and share His glory with them, but not before their respective times had come.
So, what can we learn from their lives? Understand that God’s vision for your life is for an appointed time. It will never fail because God can never lie. He has promised that the earth will pass away, but none of His word can pass away unfulfilled. If God has said it, then that settles it. So, settle it in your heart that you cannot die before you see God’s goodness in the land of the living. Convince yourself that it is impossible for you to die without seeing the end result of God’s promise to you. God’s plan for you may involve you starting small, but don’t for once believe that He intends for you to remain that way. He has explosive growth in mind for you and would do exceeding above all you can imagine by His power working through you.
The key to succeeding with God is perseverance. Just don’t give up and keep going even in the toughest times. God loves you and He will not set you up in order to fail you. He has started the good work in you and He intends to complete it. Give Him the chance to take you through the dire straits of brokenness so that you can reach the final destination of fruitful service for His kingdom. Understand that dying may not come easy, but life everlasting is the reward of those who allow God to live through them. Have a nice life and live for God.
Prayer:
Lord, thank you for the confidence you have placed in me by imparting your vision into me. Help me to patiently wait on you so that my strength can be renewed and I can mature and yield the fruits you always intended for me. Amen.