Sovereignty and Timing

God's been speaking to me a lot lately about His Sovereignty and really what it means... here are some interesting thoughts:

"Much, much stress results from your wanting to make things happen before their times have come. One of the main ways I assert My sovereignty is in the timing of events. If you want to stay close to Me and do things My way, ask Me to show you the path moment by moment. Instead of dashing headlong toward your goal [or what you think My goal is], let Me set the pace. Slow down and enjoy the journey in My presence."

"...The extreme of total sovereignty shows God to be an insecure God who makes His creation love Him. The total free choice extreme puts God in a box or on a leash and doesn’t let Him be God. However, in my limited knowlege, I believe that in God’s total sovereignty, He gives us free will to choose Him or not choose Him. Understanding that, then we have the choice to allow Him to operate in our everyday lives. He wants control, but He won't demand it or force it on us. As we get closer to God, we find that there is freedom in His sovereignty."

"We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, so that what you hope for may be fully realized. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised. (Hebrews 6:11-12)

All things more easily said than done...but I'm praying and trying to be a person who leans into God's sovereignty and rests in Him and His timing. Hard...but (I'm choosing to believe) ultimately fruitful if I can ever truly be that person.

I was aptly reminded this weekend that "every branch that does bear fruit He prunes so that it will be even more fruitful" (John 15:2b). Sort of feeling like I'm in that place right now. Again, hard but hopefully ultimately fruitful. :)