Don’t Turn Back Too Soon!
by Jilly Lyon-Taylor
On a recent walk in Scotland, I was having to keep checking my watch because I had only limited time. I was enjoying the walk and wanted to continue for as long as I could. I was reluctant to turn back, because I was keen to see what was round the next bend and over the next hill. I didn’t want to miss anything interesting or beautiful.
As I thought about this, I wondered how often we miss out on our walk with the Lord because we give up or turn back too soon. When we are spending time with the Lord, do we sometimes draw back instead of waiting quietly for Him to speak? When we are reading the Bible, do we sometimes stop when we feel we have done enough, without waiting to hear what God wants to say to us? When praying for someone, do we mention the need and then just leave it? Today’s verse talks about the need to persevere so that we will receive what He has promised. In verse 39 of the same chapter in Hebrews, it says, ‘We are not of those who shrink back’.
We live in an age of instant communication through modern technology, and we become used to receiving instant responses. But the Christian life is one of perseverance and trust, and often of waiting. Jesus says, in Luke 11:9, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” However, this does not always happen instantly. The verbs ‘ask’, ‘seek’ and ‘knock’ are all in the present continuous tense, which means that we are being told to ask and go on asking, seek and go on seeking, knock and go on knocking. We need to persevere in faith and not to shrink back, even when we don’t immediately receive answers.
Jeremiah 29:13 says, ‘You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart’. Our heart attitude is so important. Are we seeking Him with all our hearts, with the certainty that He will answer us? Let’s persevere and not be those who shrink back or turn back too soon, before we have received all He wants to show us.
Prayer: Lord, I am sorry for the times I have turned back without waiting for You to speak or to show me what You want. Please help me to persevere and to wait on You. Amen.
Jilly Lyon-Taylor is part of the Leadership Team at Ellel Pierrepont. She worked in publishing and then with children in Hong Kong before concentrating on being a full-time mother and serving in the local church. Her desire to see people healed led her to the Luke Nine Eleven Training Scheme(NETS) at Pierrepont, and now she teaches and ministers there.
Please feel free to use this devotional to send on to your friends or share with your church fellowship. Provided full acknowledgement is made to Seeds of the Kingdom as the source, you are also welcome to use it in a non-commercial way and reproduce it in magazines or other Christian websites. The copyright for any commercial use of the material remains with Ellel Ministries International.
