GOOD THINGS ARE WORTH WAITING FOR

Part 2

Pastor Maselo Mosomane

"Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel arose and went to Ramah." 1Samuel 16:13

It is estimated that David was twenty-five years old when he was anointed future king of Israel and thirty years old when he was finally anointed and inaugurated king over the entire nation of Israel. He waited for five years to see the manifestation of the promise.

Many times in the Bible, when God calls someone into His services; that person would be far from being ready for the assignment. Noah was not ready when God assigned him to rescue the human race through the ark. It took him years to prepare for the coming rain. Abraham was not ready. It took him twenty five years before he could father Isaac, the son of promise. Moses had to spend forty years behind the mountains in Midian before he could deliver the children of Israel from the bondage of Egypt. Joshua had to spend forty years under the shadow of Moses before he could lead the children of Israel across the Jordan. Paul after he met the Lord on the Damascus road had to disappear into obscurity for fourteen years before Barnabas went for him.

It looks like the more you have to wait, the bigger the assignment. It takes time to prepare for a major undertaking; it takes time to prepare for a long term mission than a short term one. Here's something to note; sometimes the waiting period is measured by time; sometimes it is measured by the intensity of the preparation.

Let us look at David's story. He was anointed by Samuel to be the future king of the entire kingdom of Israel at the age of twenty five. It took him five years to ascend the throne – only five years. Moses' waiting period was measure with time. It took him forty years. Why in the case of David it took only five years? It is true his training did not last as long as Moses' and other leaders. The difference lies in the way his training was measured. Going through the book of 1Samuel we learn how his training differs from the other leaders. His training was always life threatening.

First; he was faced with a giant. His father sent him to the battle field to check how it was going with his brothers who were enlisted in King Saul's army. There he found a Philistine champion who came along twice a day (morning and evening) to hurl threatening words to the armies of Israel. No one was brave enough to face him. All the armies together with King Saul hid themselves in fox holes and no one was willing to raise his head against him. When David arrived, there was Goliath; up as usual on his daily mission, insulting the armies of Israel and their God.

This was an opportunity for the young future king to get his military training. He could not go through a normal training for the time was short. That's why he had to start at such a high level. The other important thing to note is that his training was not conducted by man; God trained him. You must be sure that when God trains you He will throw you into the lion's den; He will throw you into the fiery furnace. He will leave you for forty days and forty nights out there in the wilderness with the devil to tempt you. He will go as far as leave you in a grave for four days after burial as in the case of Lazarus. David was thrown into the claws of a Philistine giant and he passed the test.

He also had to go through a training of short-lived recognition. When he came back from his conquest women in the city recognized him as having killed his ten thousand while King Saul was allotted only one thousand. This angered the king and since that day he planned to kill the young apprentice. He arranged to put David in the area where the battle was fierce hoping that he would be killed there. But the Master Trainer would not allow David to die before all that He said about him come to pass. Instead David became a might man of valour – a commander in preparation to lead the armies of the Lord.

Second; since he was to replace a rebellious king, he had to be trained in submission. Many times the king wanted to kill him but instead of taking the earliest opportunity to revenge himself, he would always say; "The Lord forbid that I should do this thing to my master, the Lord's anointed, to stretch out my hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the Lord" 1Samuel 24:6. He refused to kill Saul when it was logic to do so; even when everyone with him was saying; ""This is the day of which the Lord said to you, 'Behold, I will deliver your enemy into your hand, that you may do to him as it seems good to you.' " 1Samuel 24:2. How possible is it? How possible is it when someone nearly pinned you against the wall with a javelin? How possible is it when someone sought to trap you with his daughter when he gave her to you in marriage? How possible it is when you had to leave your country and live in exile at such a tender age?

Beloved; it is possible when the training is conducted by God. It is possible when the anointing of God is upon your life. You see when you have the oil of God on your head you respect the same oil on someone else's head even if he is out to eliminate you.

We see a good pattern in this young man's life. We behold a pattern of someone who is willing to wait and be trained. I mean David was anointed to replace Saul but he was still willing to wait and submit. What would you do if you were in the same situation?

Here is someone who's service has been terminated and you are to take his office. According to the company policy he must serve a thirty day notice. He mistreats you in every possible way. Everybody in the office knows you are been unfairly treated. What would you do? Will you be like David and submit?

Will this not be a lesson for us today? A willing heart to wait no matter how long it takes; no matter how severe the training turns out to be; I will wait for my time. I will not speed up the process; I will wait for "…those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint" Isaiah 40:31

What are we saying friend? We are saying we will wait for the right time in this year. We will not be carried over by the excitement of 2010. We will wait and complete our spiritual training. We don't care even if we are more qualified than the one who is holding the position we are destined to occupy. We will wait no matter how long it takes; no matter how painful it becomes – we will wait.

Beloved; I pray that God through His Spirit may open the eyes of your understanding that you may comprehend how spiritual principles work. I pray that you will understand that every person who is in authority; no matter how incompetent he or she might be, is appointed by God and God says we should respect authority. He or she may be a sad story – a bad report; but God's appointment is upon him or her. If you want to pass the test and move to the next spiritual level you must respect God's appointment. You must respect God's anointed ones. God did not make a bad appointment, no! God's appointment is in rebellion against God; leave his or her fate to God. Don't despise him or her; don't push him or her out of office. Don't follow those who do not fear God and sin with them. You are a child of God if you are born again and the Spirit of God lives inside of you. Don't follow human reasoning; follow Jesus. Follow the word of God. You can't behave like you've got no God.

David refused to judge Saul. Not only did he do that, he refused to kill him too. He refused to be an opportunist and seize the throne by himself. He waited on God. If David waited, we can also wait. I mean our training is not as severe as David's. Our training is not as long as Moses'.

Good things are worth waiting for. Don't rush this year – not even when qualifications allow you. If you wait you will finish your training; if you don't you will skip training and end up in a worst state than your predecessor. You will end up as a spiritual dropout.