Mid-Week Message: Faith In a Quick Serve World

"I want that large sized and I need it right away.  Oh, and I need extra sauce.  Excuse me, but I forgot to say that I didn't want any tomatoes.  Could you remake this?"  Such is the norm in our fast paced, service oriented world.

Our daughter is a coffee barista for a well-known chain.  Each day she has new stories to tell of impatient people who want their coffee yesterday but fail to be complete in their orders.  For instance, they will place their order but forget to mention what size they want.  Or, they will order a drink but fail to mention that they want it iced and then get perturbed when it comes out hot.  We are so used to being waited on now that we sometimes assume others just can read our minds and automatically know what we desire.

I wonder what the Lord thinks about our lifestyle?  And I wonder what we are missing out on by having such an "instant" society.

I remember when my parents would actually cook breakfast.  After we had eaten, my mom would begin planning lunch and then dinner.  Food took a while to prepare.  Cakes were mixed with multiple ingredients then cooked in the oven and we were warned not to make a lot of noise so it wouldn't fall.  A roast chicken actually took hours to cook.  Potatoes were peeled, cut and boiled before being mashed by hand.  Nothing came from the store already prepared.

As we have gotten used to short waits for what we want, our prayer lives and our faith may have suffered. Scripture teaches to be persistent in prayer.  In 1 Samuel we are told of Hannah's desire for a child of her own and how she prayed for years for that to happen.  She didn't give up when it didn't happen but continued to pray.  God did hear her prayer and He did grant the desire of her heart, but He did not answer quickly.

God is not a vending machine where we put in a few coins (prayers) and pull our wish out of the slot at the bottom.  He has His own timing,  Because He is eternal, and can see the past, future and present, He knows what is right for our lives.  He will answer.  However, His answer very well may be, "No, that is not what you need", or "Wait a little longer."  This can be very frustrating for those of us who are used to this microwave fast world.

In regards to our spiritual lives, we need to return to the habits of yesterday.  Prayer needs to be constant, consistent and persistent.  Our Father loves us and wants us to bring our needs and requests and lay them at His feet.  He wants to guide us through life and help us in our battles.  Will it always be quick?  Most of the time no.  However, when His answer comes, it will be the right one.  It may not come in the form we were expecting and may not even be the answer we wanted.  He doesn't exist to serve us.  He, as our Creator, always listens and always cares.  Whatever His response is and whenever it comes, it will be worth waiting for.  So, be still.  Trust.  Believe.  And wait.  However long it's necessary.



Matthew 7:7-11

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?  If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!"