Patience, My Friend

Tonight, as I was preparing to cook some hamburgers for my family, I realized that I did not take the meat out to unthaw before I left for evening service. Had I done that, I could have came home and started right in on seasoning and cooking. After taking the meat out of the freezer, I pulled out my mom’s trusty “Super Defrosting Tray”. That thing will have meat unthawed in half the time!… well usually. Tonight however, 10 minutes went by… 30 minutes passed… 35 minutes passed… Still. Frozen. Out of impatience, I read the pack and saw that microwaving to unthaw was allowed, so guess what I did… Yep!! I placed those bad boys on a plate and proceeded to put them in the microwave… but then I felt a conviction.

In that moment, I heard the Holy Spirit say, “Why are you rushing the process?”

Right then, as the microwave was going, I pressed “stop”, and stood there a moment. Wow… I had become so impatient with the natural unthawing process of the burgers, that I resorted to a route that could actually do more harm to the meat than good. (How many of us have ever been there before, right?) *raises both hands*

In society, we have become so accustomed to “quick fixes”, and shorter routes, that we often forget the crucial necessity of waiting. My mom said it best when she walked into the kitchen seconds later, and confirmed the Holy Spirit by saying, “Don’t rush, Charra, take your time and do it right.” How often do we find ourselves trying to take alternative routes, but expecting the same originally intended results? The truth is, unless we follow the direct instructions given to us with the assignment, or in this case, “the burgers”, and let the natural process run its course, things may not end as beautiful, tasty, powerful, or effective as they were originally intended to.

So I want to encourage you, as I was also encouraged and quite convicted by this lesson on patience, to let the process run it’s course. Although it may seem as though things are taking too long, and the envisioned end result is causing you to want to rush, don’t. Ecclesiastes 3:11 says, “He has made everything beautiful in it’s time.” As we go through our “process” whatever that may personally be, God is doing a specific work in us, one that is necessary for the overall plan He has for us. So that when the time has come, and the process is complete, we will be ready, prepared, and equipped for what’s next!

So, my friend, whatever your “hamburger” may be, I want to encourage you to take your time and let it unthaw properly. I can promise you, the ending result will be delicious!

God Bless! ❤