Walking in the Rhythm of the Lord

June 2009

We live in a busy, fast-track, “hurry up” society, and everything around us seems to be accelerating. But God has always had His own sense of timing, His own schedule of events. It never moves too quickly; it never runs late; it’s always absolutely perfect.

We must be determined to align with God’s timing, proactively seeking His timing for everything in our lives and aligning with it in every possible way. This is a key to victory, success, and the fulfillment of God’s purposes in our lives because God’s timing is part of His will. If we want to obey God’s will, we must be sensitive to His timing.   

First Chronicles 12:32 tells us: “. . . the sons of Issachar had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do.” The word Issachar means, “he will bring a reward.” There are rewards associated with moving in God’s timing—when we not only obey what God asks us to do but when He asks us to do it.

It’s an Everyday Matter

The Lord wants us to walk in the rhythm of His timing in all areas of our lives—not just the “big” things, but in the ordinary, everyday things we do, including:

• daily schedule (what time to get up in the morning, what time to go to bed at night, and how to make best use of the hours in between).
• relationships (how much time to invest in certain relationships, how to spend the time we have with certain people).
• vacations, holidays, rest time.
• purchases and gifts (major purchases or significant gifts).
• discussing about issues with spouse or others.
• involvement in church or ministry activities.
• reading certain books or participating in certain classes or other learning opportunities.
• getting involved in social activities.

Remember, following God’s timing in our everyday lives is part of walking in God’s will.

Helpful Hints for Staying in God’s Timing

• Do leave old things behind and be open for the new things God wants to give you.
• Do commit to honor and bless your past season and everything about it as you move forward in God’s timing into a new season.
• Do be determined to be repositioned in the right spirit, not with a bad or critical attitude.
• Do pray to accurately discern the new season God is leading you into.
• Don’t try to keep alive something God says is dead.
• Don’t be ignorant of the enemy’s schemes against you.
• Don’t allow pride or selfish desires to cause you to move ahead of God or to lag behind Him.
• Don’t ever stop pursuing God’s timing, even if you feel (or know!) you’ve missed it.

I encourage you to pray for greater sensitivity to God’s timing and to be patient when things seem to move slowly and to “get moving” when they seem to be going quickly. Be willing to make any adjustments necessary to align with God’s timing, because that’s part of obeying His will and it has great rewards!