As we glided through the deep blue waters of the Yacuma River, nestled in the swampy grasslands of Northern Bolivian, our guide brought our boat to a slow stop and began navigating us towards a tree. While beautiful, there was nothing special about the tree, it appeared to be like any of the other hundreds of trees we had seen growing along the banks of the river. But our knowledgeable guide knew better. After waiting for a couple of minutes, we heard a rustling among the leaves and suddenly we were in the company of dozens of capuchin monkeys. They jumped from branch to branch and eventually joined us on our boat, hoping to scavenge a snack. They were not disappointed; we drudged out some crumbled crackers from our weathered backpacks and literally had monkeys eating out of our hands. Had our guide not taken us on this detour, we would have missed this beautiful and surreal moment. At times along our journey through the river, we were impatient, even dubious, with our guide. “Why is he stopping? Where is he taking us? Is he lost?” Yet, not once were we disappointed as each time we were rewarded with the sight of incredible jungle animals-cayman, turtles, pink river dolphins and colorful birds such as I have never seen before.
Sometimes life is like this, right? We think that we know
and understand where our life is headed and all that is happening around us and
then suddenly something seemingly derails our journey and we impatiently think,
“God, what are you doing? Where are you taking me? This makes no sense!” Yet,
God is His sovereignty has a detailed plan for where He is taking us and
ultimately that plan is for our good and for His glory.
As the Israelites were wandering in the desert, making their
way to Canaan, the Lord sent an angel to the Israelites to “guard (them) along
the way and to bring (them) to the place (He) had prepared.” (Exodus 23:20)
Yet, that journey certainly didn’t look like what the Israelites had in mind.
God promised the Israelites that He would deliver Canaan into their hands, driving
out the fierce tribes inhabiting the land. Yet, the promise was fulfilled in God's timing and way, and I suspect it wasn’t as the Israelites
imagined: “But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land
would become desolate and the wild animals too numerous for you. Little by little I will drive them out before
you, until you have increased enough to
take possession of the land.” Exodus 23:29-30 Had the land the Israelites so
strongly desired been immediately conquered for them, the barrenness and the
wild animals of Canaan would have destroyed them. One step at a time, God made
the Israelites stronger and stronger until the time was perfect for His optimal
blessing.
How many times have I pleaded with God, “How long, Lord? Do
this NOW! Heal me now! Make me brave now! Give me what I want now!
Fix this situation now!”? And each
time God has lovingly and compassionately responded, “Trust Me. Your times are
in my hands.” (Psalm 31:15) Sometimes, He does things little by little, growing
us, increasing us, requiring us to trust Him, so that we may receive the
fullness of the blessing He has for us.
He is a good, good Guide. You can trust Him with the “NOWs!” of today. He’s got some awesome “monkeys”
for you to see while you wait.
