For the vision is yet for an appointed time; it hastens toward the goal and it will not fail. Though it tarries, wait for it; for it will certainly come, it will not delay.
Habakkuk 2:3
Reflection
It’s hard to keep holding on to your vision when all you seem to meet is delay. You’ve stayed faithful, you’ve prayed with depth and expectation, you’ve taken steps forward, even when it was hard, especially when it was hard, and still — the door you are standing in front of hasn’t opened. The healing hasn’t come. The breakthrough still feels like something you are reaching for in the distance, like something close enough to hope for, but not close enough to hold.
When you are stuck in that disorienting space between longing and fulfillment, doubt can start to make you wonder if what you wish for is even something that is possible for you, is even something that has been written into your story. When this happens, it is important to remember that delay is not the same as denial. God’s timing is not a punishment, it is a reflection of his knowing, it is a rhythm that moves beyond what you can see.
Sometimes God slows the external so he can strengthen the internal. Sometimes God holds back the visible breakthroughs because the invisible foundation within you needs time to form and mature, needs time to anchor itself. You are not waiting for your blessings because he has forgotten you — you are waiting for your blessings because he is forming you. This is the part where your depth is developed, this is the part where your faith is challenged, this is the part where the unseen begins to take shape. What feels still to you is not still to God. He is always working, even in quiet.
At the end of the day, you don’t have to enjoy the periods of waiting. You don’t have to pretend that your patience doesn’t hang heavy in your heart. But please, don’t confuse what’s being timed perfectly in your life for something that is being withheld, with something that is being denied. God doesn’t fill your heart with promises he doesn’t intend to bring to life. If he placed desire in your spirit, he has also planned its appointed time. The vision is still alive — even if you can’t see that it is blooming yet. Let the delay build your trust, do not let it fracture your hope.
You have not missed what is meant for you.
It’s still coming, exactly as it’s meant to.
Prayer
God, I’ve been waiting for things that haven’t come to pass, and at times I’ve wondered if I was wrong to hope. But I don’t want to give up just because I don’t understand the timing. Help me to trust that what you’ve spoken over my life is still moving towards me. Teach me how to wait without growing bitter, how to rest without giving in to fear, and how to stay faithful even when it’s quiet. I believe that what’s delayed is not denied — it’s just becoming ready. And so am I, God. So am I.
Amen.
