Journey into Lightl

Our culture teaches us to make things happen. Be a leader! Then we will become an important person.

But God does not want us to make things happen. He wants to make things happen. He wants us to cooperate with him in making things happen (Matthew 11:28-30).

Sometimes I have waited for God to make things happen. For instance, I waited for God to provide me with a wife. He finally made things happen when I was 31 by bringing into my life a wonderful Christian lady.

I cooperated with him by following his guidance and relying on his support during the courtship process. We just celebrated our 36th anniversary of a good marriage!

However, I have not always waited for God to make things happen. Several years ago I wanted to get promoted. I foolishly believed that I would be a more important person if I were promoted.

So, I took matters into my own hands and began adding responsibilities to my job in order to get my position upgraded. And I succeeded!

But I actually failed. I had so many responsibilities I could not keep control of the organization. I suffered through the humiliation of a demotion that left me in a lower position than when I started. I tried to make things happen without God and suffered for it.

God promises us that we can make anything happen that he wants to happen through his strength (Philippians 4:13). He also consoles us that we are already important and do not need to make things happen (Isaiah 43:4).

We are not the only ones who try to make things happen without God.

Abraham jumped the gun and did not wait for God to provide Isaac as the son that he promised. Instead, Abraham tried to make it happen by having Ismael first (Genesis 16).

As many of you know, Ismael became the father of the Arabic nations. Israel has been suffering ever since. There are consequences for not letting God make it happen.

Saul tried to make it happen too. He did not wait for Samuel to arrive and make the burnt offerings as commanded by God. Instead, he jumped to the gun and made the offerings himself. He lost the throne over that foolish decision (I Samuel 13).

So, why are we prone to try to make things happen? Why don’t we wait on the Lord and make things happen together?

It is not hard to understand why. We have been well trained to make things happen. Until God came into our lives, we were the only ones who could make things happen. This habit of making things happen without God still persists after we become Christians (Romans 7: 14-25). We often like it that way too for it appeals to our pride.

So, how can you stop trying to make things happen without God? What is one thing you can do today to grow more in your partnership with God in making things happen?

May I suggest that you ask God to show you one thing in your life today in which you are trying to make happen without his leadership. Ask him what you can do to cooperate with him. And then cooperate with him in making it happen!