“Dear woman, that’s not our problem,” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come” (John 2:4 NLT).
Hurry. Hurry! Hurry!! Life is so often a big hurry!
After our children are born we can’t wait for them to sleep through the night. Then we are anxious for them to sit up. Then to crawl. Then to walk. It is so exciting to watch for the next milestone in their development, but often we look too far into the future. It is easy to push our children along too quickly without waiting for God’s timing.
When my first son, Luke, was a toddler, I got a call from the church children’s worker informing me that he had thrown a toy all the way across the large nursery room. I guess I should have been concerned that someone would get hurt, but all I could think was, “Wow, that kid has a great arm!”
Visions of future football games, cheering crowds, and college scholarships stampeded through my head like a herd of charging linebackers. I quickly needed to tackle my mind as I realized I had all but signed him up for private training – and he was only nine months old!
Don’t we all do this? We recognize God-given talents in our children and automatically we want to hurry to help them attain our dreams. It’s not wrong to encourage our children in a certain direction where they may be able to use their gifts and talents, but we must make sure we are following God’s leading and waiting for His timing.
Another mother – in the Bible – did this, too. From the time Mary conceived, she knew that her child was the Son of God. Wow! Can you imagine having a perfect and holy child? Fully believing in Who He was and what He could do, Mary must have been anxious for Jesus to reveal Himself to the world.
One day the time seemed right to her. Mary, Jesus, and His disciples were attending a wedding in Cana of Galilee. While they were celebrating the wine ran out. Mary came to her Son and told Him of their hosts’ pending faux pas. His answer was surprising. “Dear woman, that’s not our problem, . . . My time has not yet come.”
Jesus was gently reminding His mother that His life was timed by the purposes of God and not the purposes of the world. We know from the rest of the story that Jesus did, in fact, respond to the crisis and turned plain water into the most delicious wine. But it was clear that he was more intent on following His Father’s schedule than anyone else’s – even His loving mother’s.
My son, Luke, did have a very successful high school athletic career, but God provided for college in a different way. Instead of pursuing a sports-focused involvement, he became involved in serving international students and teaching them about Christ. I am so glad I didn’t push too hard for my plans, but rather let God lead in His timing.
In what areas are you hurrying your child along too quickly? Spend some time today asking God to show you where you need to wait for Him. Because in God’s plan there is no time for hurry!
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