Delayed

Steve Says

Just this week I found out that an audio book I have been looking forward to has been delayed for over a month. I know it seems silly, but delays like this can be frustrating. When we have an expectation for something and it gets delayed sometimes it can be hard to cope with. To be honest, I was expecting the release to be delayed because of past experiences with this series, so I wasn’t upset, but I was still disappointed.  

In 2 Thessalonians 3 Paul is addressing a Church where people have decided to stop working because they believe that Christ’s second coming is imminent. Paul admonishes them that if someone isn’t willing to work you should not feed them. The context here is important, these people believe that they don’t need to worry about what to eat or what to wear because Jesus is coming back soon. Paul tells them to continue to work. Jesus even says that no one knows when He will come again except the Father. Jesus says it will be like a thief in the night.  

We are called to wait upon the Lord, but that does not mean we become idle. We have work to do, some of that work is to support our livelihood, some of that work is to grow the Kingdom. Sometimes waiting on the Lord can seem like a long delay for something we have been waiting for. In a lot of ways, it is! However, we cannot become discouraged as we wait, we need to stay focused, we need to stay faithful to our calling.

In 2 Peter 3:9 it says, “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” You see, Jesus’ return is not delayed, it is God waiting for more of His creation to turn back to Him. As his ambassadors to the world, we have work to do!