WHY IS GOD SO SLOW?

Deuteronomy 23:29-30 ESV - 29 I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the wild beasts multiply against you.  29 "I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the beasts of the field become too numerous for you. 30 Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased and possess the land. 

One of the questions I have asked myself over and over is this "Why is God so slow in answering my prayers."  Have you ever felt that way?  Have you ever wondered why God is taking His time in bringing about His promises to you?

I know I have. Again and again.

To do it fast has its consequences.  Once you eradicate the enemy you also must be prepared to occupy the land.  To do it too quickly - the land would become desolate and the beast of the field become too numerous.  This was just one reason why it was better for God to defeat their enemies little by little.  Doing it the "easy way" - clearing out all of Israel's enemies out at once - had consequences Israel could not see or appreciate.

So... God did it little by little: Though it sometimes frustrates us, this is often the way God works in our life. He clears things out little by little, though we might prefer it all at once. 

But God wanted Israel to have increased in the process of taking the Promised Land. He wanted them to grow.

Doing it all at once might seem easier and better to us, but it would bring consequences we cannot see or appreciate. God cares that we grow, and so He grows us little by little.

God had promised the Israelites the Promised Land. They were going to go across the Jordan River into Israel and take on some tribes that were already living there. They didn’t think they could do it. They thought the goal was too big.

In Exodus 23:29-30, God is saying to the Israelites, “You know these enemies? They’re bigger than you. But I’m not going to give you the whole land in the first year. You’re going to take it over a little bit at a time — one battle at a time. 
You’re growing stronger. When you’re strong enough to handle it all, you’ll get it all.”

When I read those verses, it was like a promise coming directly to me. I realized I didn’t have to accomplish it all in the first year. I’m going to spend the rest of my life serving Jesus Christ, and I’ll do it on his timetable and at his pace.

That understanding gave me confidence to take on enormous goals. The Word activated my faith. God’s Word can activate your faith, too.

My life has not been a race as much as it has been a steady prod where God has added one victory on another.

Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. (Psalm 27:14 NIV)

I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning. (Psalm 130:5, 6 NIV)

God will have the last word in your life.  You might have to wait for it, it might take a while to see all of its fulfillment, but God WILL come through at the right time so you can have the ultimate victory and have the ultimate measure of success.  May God give you the strength to wait for His promise in your life.