God And Time

“But beloved do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” (2 Peter 3:8)

God operates in eternity (Isaiah 57:15). God operates out of time but yet He is in time. God created time; He put time in place at creation (Genesis 1: 5,8,13,19,23,31). At the end of each day of creation, the day was announced. He created time but He isn’t bound by time. One of the definitions of time in the dictionary is the duration in which all things happen or a precise instant that something happens. This definition encapsulates both times and seasons (Ecclesiastes 3:1-12). A season is a process of time, while time can be defined as a point in a period. The scriptures say a thousand years with God is just as a passing day as brief as a few night hours (Psalm 90:4, NLT). Though God operates in timelessness, He still regards time (the times and the seasons of humankind). One resource that when lost is out of man’s control is time, but God has control over time. Below are ways that God can handle and control time:

God can collapse or compress time: “…. And Ahab mounted and rode (his chariot) and went (inland) to Jezreel. Then the hand of the Lord came upon Elijah (giving him supernatural strength). He girded up his loins and outran Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel (nearly twenty miles).” (1 Kings 18:45b-46, AMP).  God collapsed time for Elijah and gave him supernatural strength to bare-footedly outrun chariots. Elijah made the journey from Mount Carmel to Jezreel in record time because God facilitated time for him. May we all receive divine speed this month in Jesus’ name.

God can stagnate time: The Israelites who came out of Egypt’s captivity went around and round in circle for many years because they refused to learn the lessons God wanted them to learn. A journey of eleven days took them forty years, and a whole generation (except Joshua and Caleb) didn’t enter the land God promised them (Deuteronomy 1:1-3). If one refuses to use time well and appropriately God can stagnate time. When people think they have time, they take their time. We are enjoined to redeem the time and not trifle with it (Ephesians 5:15-17).

God can expand or extend time: “After this Job lived one hundred and forty years, and saw his children and grandchildren for four generations. So, Job died, old and full of days.” (Job 42:16-17). After Job lost his seven sons and three daughters in one day, God gave him a new set of seven sons and three daughters, and also gave him long life (after healing him of a satanic affliction). God expanded Job’s time, allowing him to live till 140 years and to see 4 generations. It is God that determines when the sun sets for the righteous.

CONCLUSION: As 2019 ends and a new year approaches, we must be assured that our times are in God’s hands. He controls the times and seasons. Even though He operates in timelessness, He still regards us who live in the realm of time. As we cooperate with Him, He will compress time for us by blessing our labors and enable us to achieve more in a shorter period of time. He can also choose to expand our time by giving us more opportunities to fulfill life and ministry. Receive grace to end 2019 strong in Jesus’ name.