Wait Is Preparation
Hello Friends,
I have been thinking a lot about the value of time. It isn’t really any wonder since for decades I taught Time Management. My experience with Time Management taught me that managing time is merely event managing. Everything is an event and we simply manage those events according to our priorities and we strategically, if we plan, stack our events in a way that allows us to achieve what we want most.
Something that often surprises people is that the times of preparation are also events. Getting ready for what many people describe as the main event is just as important as the so called “main event.” I was reminded of this fact just this week. As I was studying the account of Noah and his building the ark in preparation for the big flood, I was struck by the importance of the events that comprised the decades long building of the ark. Scripture reveals that it took long enough for Noah to have children and then for his children to marry. Historians and theologians believe it was anywhere from 70-100 years. Regardless, it was a long time to stick with a plan and continue to work diligently waiting for the so called “big event.”
I believe that Noah really grasped time management. You could say well taking possibly 100 years to build an ark doesn’t sound like good time management to me. But I submit to you that Noah proved the value of every preparatory event and seized them as opportunities to build his faith and strengthen his relationship with God. I don’t believe that Noah worked going on 100 years waiting for something great to happen, to see the miraculous, or to experience fellowship with God. I believe that every day he set out to work and in doing so was thrilled to get building instructions from God. I believe that every day he communed with God, learned something new, and was building a personal, strong relationship with God. I believe that Noah saw the building of the ark relevant and necessary. I believe that Noah poured his heart, soul, mind, and all his body into completing the ark event by event. Noah wasn’t marking time and waiting for the “big event.” Noah was preparing himself daily for daily use by God. Noah was obedient. He was diligent, and he was faithful.
The “big event” came. But for Noah it was the demonstration of the nearly 100 years of preparation. Noah wasn’t surprised by the event though all he warned were. Noah wasn’t feeling like finally it is here. Finally, something was happening. No, on the day the God told Noah to get in the ark and to get his family in the ark, Noah was simply doing what he always did. He was obeying. Noah wasn’t waiting patiently for something to happen. Noah was preparing with great anticipation and joyful expectation for God to complete the work and promise He had given Noah. Noah worked while he waited. Noah seized the opportunity to get to know God, to collaborate with Him, and to develop a true and meaningful relationship with God as Noah allowed God to prepare him to be used, elevated, and blessed.
Too often we get caught up with the upcoming event and totally miss the blessing and the value of the stages and steps leading up to the event. Too many times, we want to skip the preparation phase and jump straight to the celebration or completion phase. But I submit to you that at any time if Noah had stopped being obedient in the preparation phase and had abandoned his preparatory work, Noah would not have seen God’s miraculous work, experienced the protection and divine provision from God, or known the blessing of being in the ark of safety. Every nail, every board, and each floor needed to be completed as instructed for Noah to receive the blessings God intended for him to have. Noah’s work wasn’t just for protection from the flood. Noah’s work was about building and maintaining a personal relationship with God. It was about learning obedience. It was about a resolute faith and a personal devotion to God that was satisfied in the here and now, thrilled with a moment-by-moment relationship with God, and one that modeled obedience to God and fellowship with God.
The building of the ark by Noah wasn’t just preparing an ark of safety. It was also preparing Noah for the ark. All those years building the ark had to teach Noah how to wait patiently on God. As Noah and his family sit in that ark cooped up and no way to get out, Noah had to know how to trust God when he couldn’t see. Noah had to trust the plan when progress wasn’t visible. Noah had to know how to wait effectively. All the time he was in the boat, Noah had to tend to the animals, lead his family, and maintain the organization necessary for all to cohabitate on the ark. Noah and his family were on the ark for around 370 days. To endure that kind of waiting, Noah had to have a strong, unshakable faith. And that my friend, was what the daily events necessary for building the ark were teaching Noah.
Noah was managing his events simply by making one decision. Noah put God first in his life. In doing so, Noah followed the commands of God. He wasn’t waiting for something in the future. Noah was experiencing God in the here and now. Today, I encourage you to experience God in the here and now. Don’t wait for Heaven to get to know Him. Read His Word, the Bible. Pray often and fellowship daily with Him. The events of your life are steppingstones of blessings leading to the greatest event of all. They lead to complete fellowship with God and a forever place in His presence. Grasp the wait. It is preparation for the future.
In His Service,
Kim