PRAYER: The Key to Destiny StepsSample

NO SHORT-CUTS TO GOD'S KINGDOM PURPOSE

When I think of the term "shortcut," I'm reminded of taking a tumble down some stairs because I attempted to move too hastily. I learned that ascending or descending a flight of stairs has one significant commonality … it can cause a delay in the ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival) if a fall occurs. The Lord has ordered your destiny steps. Moving too fast or too slow can have a major impact on your life and the lives of those along your path. Spending time in prayer helps us to discern the pace at which we need to move toward our destiny. God's Word is the GPS (God Positioning System) for our prayer journey.

God's ways are not our ways, His thoughts are not our thoughts, and His timing is better than ours. When small windows of impatience open, we fail to grasp that revelation. It is safe to say that when prayer takes a backseat, our need to be satisfied overrides God's need to be glorified. Let that sink in for a moment.

When we miss having intentional conversations with God, we tend to take matters into our own hands and lean to our "own understanding." Before we dive further into the significance of avoiding shortcuts and trusting in God's timing, let's explore what it can look like when we refuse to wait on God. Let's reflect on the account of Sarai and Abram in Genesis 16.

Sarai and Abram refused to trust God's timing because they walked by sight and not by faith. Today, we are still experiencing the effects of that decision. Trusting in God's timing is crucial because the outcome is always multi-purposed (as opposed to one-dimensional). Instead of taking matters into our own hands, it is imperative that we spend time in prayer and reading scriptures that line up with what we are believing God for. On the other side of the wait, we will find a more patient, well-developed, wiser version of ourselves.