Is it time yet?, almost sounds like a familiar movie title, Are we there yet? I wonder if king David ever asked himself this question, Is it time yet? King David was quite a significant leader in the Old Testament. David was faced with a dilemma when it came to timing in his life? Maybe after killing Goliath, David wondered, is it time yet? Maybe he could still hear the crowd saying,” Saul has slain his thousands and David his ten thousands”, and silently wondered, is it time yet? It appeared as though God had handed Saul over to David on more than one occasion, was it time yet? Was God using this as a test? Was God handing Saul over to David to fulfill the promise he made to David to make him king? We could speculate, but in the end it would only be speculation. I imagine that David saw it as a test and treated both instances as such.
David had more than one opportunity to take the life of Saul, but David had to decide what kind of Leader he was going to be. David decided as a Leader that it was not his job to fulfill the timing and will of God in his life. In our lives we have to decide what kind of Leader we want to be as well. Will we take our destiny into our hands or allow God to work his plan. Now I understand that scripture teaches us that faith without works is dead(James 2:17), but we cannot force the hand of God. I am amazed by David’s restraint in the midst of the turmoil he faced with Saul. While watching a teaching series by Jimmy Evans “I Am David”, he referenced David not taking advantage of the fact that he was anointed to take Saul’s place. Just because God has called us and anointed us for a greater purpose doesn’t give us the right to rebel against the current authority God has in place.
I was at a conference where Perry Noble spoke and he made a couple of statements I want to share in this post. The first was “The anointing does not allow you to shortcut the process.” David realized that God promotes and demotes. If we try to hurry the process we will end up in a bigger mess. David could have said, ” I have been anointed, I don’t have to deal with this”, but he submitted to the process God was taking him through. This leads to the second statement, which was “There is no progress for the leader who will not embrace the process.” The process builds character in us as Leaders. The process is often painful and feels unbearable at times. I recall going through several things in my life that were painful. I wondered at times when would it be over. I remember this lady in our church who would tell me “It won’t always be this way”. I am sure I had doubts that she was right. I imagine David felt the same way. He knew he was anointed to be king but it wasn’t the right time. Will you embraces the process, in order to see your dreams as a Leader come to fruition?
Saul had tried to kill David and he could have had the mindset of an eye for an eye and tooth for tooth but he choose to take the high road. I am sure that there were times for David, as well as for you and I, that the high road doesn’t look so good. The bible tells us this in Romans 12:19 Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the LORD. I know this is the first thing that goes through your mind when someone does you wrong. But for the rest of us we want to get even when we are done wrong. David obviously understood in God’s time he would be promoted.
I leave you with this thought how will you handle the anointing that God has placed on your life. Just because you are anointed doesn’t mean that you have been appointed. The anointing that is on your life is only a sign of what is to come. The appointment only comes after we allow ourselves to go through the process. Will you try and push the Hand of God? Or, will you allow God to promote in his time? It is so easy to become disillusioned when we have a promise from God. In our microwave society we have a mindset of I see it, I want it now, but God has a way of using time to prepare us for his purpose. Those who are willing to endure the process will reap big, while those that seek a quick fix will have a life filled with dismay.