Obtaining the Promise

"And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 'This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir'" (Genesis 15:4 NKJV). "And he believed in the Lord ..." (Genesis 15:6 NKJV). “So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey ...” (Exodus 3:8 NKJV).

“God you said it ... but you promised me ... when will this season end ... is it my time?” These are the statements that we may make and the questions that we may ask when it comes to the promises that God has spoken over our lives. As believers, we understand that the declaration that God has made to us, whether it is salvation of family, the start of a ministry, the birth of a business, healing, or whatever, will come to pass. But what do you do when it seems like the promise is taking too long or is not coming to pass? We have to have faith, be obedient, and be diligent.

My faith: Manʼs time vs. Godʼs time

The Bible stated that Abram believed the Lord when God promised him a son.

Abram was able to do this because he had faith and trusted the Lord. He took God at His Word. As simple or hard as this may sound, it is important. We have to remind ourselves of who we are in God and believe that what God says is “money in the bank.” This takes practice because having faith is a daily thing. The more we believe, the more God is able to move in our lives because we are not fighting His Word. Imagine being the children of Israel wandering in the wilderness for 40 years. We know that this was because of their disobedience, but what if Godʼs will is for us to wait 10 years for our promise? The act of waiting can strain our faith. Therefore, understanding that our time (manʼs time) is not Godʼs time helps us not to fall into the trap of impatience. Often, what we donʼt consider is that some things must reach their full measure before we can walk into our promise. 

God speaking to Abram in Genesis 15:13-16 (NKJV) is a perfect example of this as it states “Then He said to Abram: 'Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years. And also the nation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they shall come out with great possessions. Now as for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried at a good old age. But in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.'” God is the master planner, so we must trust the process. Itʼs like preparing a meal. Every meal has a required amount of preparation time before it is ready to eat. And like any meal, once we achieve the promise, God will give us enough time to enjoy it!

Obedience

Doing what the Lord says is the key ingredient to obtaining the promise. Our

obedience can determine how long it will take before we can enter the promise.

Because of the children of Israel's lack of faith to take possession of the promised land, coupled with their further complaints against the Lord, an entire generation missed out on entering the land (reference Numbers 14 NKJV). Their disobedience was their downfall. Only Caleb and Joshua were able to lead the next generation of the children of Israel into the promised land because they had a different spirit and mindset. Be obedient to Godʼs instructions. Doing so prevents unnecessary mishaps and detoured paths. It also prevents fear from paralyzing us because we are pushing through our fears and moving in Godʼs will.

Diligence

Once we believe and obey God, being diligent becomes so much easier. As

we wait on the fulfillment of the promise, keep working! In other words, keep doing whatever God has for you to do. Delay may come, but it is definitely not a denial. We have to take the time to enjoy our journey, knowing that living each day and walking each path with God is true joy. Studying the Word and speaking it over our lives keeps us in a state of progress. It keeps us pressing toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus (reference Philippians 3:14 KJV).

Conclusion

The promises that God has spoken over our lives will come to pass. Just like He

did with Abrabam, the children of Israel, and countless others in the Bible, God will fulfill His promises. The only ones who can affect our promises are us. So it is important that we believe God at His Word (have faith), live a lifestyle of obedience, and be diligent in whatever God purposes for us. And again, as we navigate through life, let's enjoy the journey and remember that God will give us enough time to enjoy all that He has for us!