The Eleventh Hour

Recently I was with my son waiting to help him move into his new home. We were hoping that he would be able to move in earlier than originally planned so that I could help him move and still make my early flight on a Saturday morning.

Ephesians 2:8-10 NIV

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

We were excited to hear that he could move in Wednesday afternoon, so we moved him out of the hotel he was staying in temporarily while he transitioned from one home to another and when we arrived at the location of his new home after an hour and a half of waiting, we found out it wasn't going to happen.

We were both disappointed but as I told my son Gods timing is perfect, we just needed to be patient and wait on him. So, we booked a hotel near his new home and went to dinner.

Thursday, we decided to do some shopping right before lunch and thankfully my son remembered that we had to check out of our room by 11:00 am (mind you it was 11:15 am) so we rushed back to the hotel with food in hand and thankfully they extended our stay until noon. As we sat there eating our lunch I began to think "what if it doesn't work out before I have to leave, then what?" and I had to instantly remind myself that God always shows up in the eleventh hour and that I needed to surrender the timing to him. At 11:55 am we had 5 minutes left to finish our lunch and to pack up our things before we had to check out and in that moment my son received a call stating that he could pick up the keys immediately. Do you know I was brought to tears instantly because I was overwhelmed by God's goodness yet again? Once again God showed me that when we surrender and let go of the outcome, He provides.

Matthew 20:1-16 tells us about the parable of the workers in the vineyard. vs 6 About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, 'Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?' vs 7 'Because no one has hired us', they answered. He said to them, 'you also go and work in my vineyard.' vs 8 When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, 'Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.' vs 9 "The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius. vs 10 So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. vs 11 When they received it, they began to grumble against the land owner. How many times have we grumbled because we didn't like the outcome of a situation?

Friends we don't always know what Gods plan is, and sometimes our situation can look as if things are not going to work out for us, but when we surrender the outcome completely to God, He does show up for us in the eleventh hour.

How have you personally witnessed God in action?

Our challenge is to start paying attention to our prayers and the outcomes of each. Perhaps our prayers are not answered in the way we hoped they would be, but what I've learned is what God has in store for us is usually better than we can imagine. I want to encourage you to get a prayer journal so that you can write down the date of your prayers, the actual prayer itself so that when God answers it you can write down the date the prayer was answered and the means in which God answered it. Meaning, did he use Scripture, another person, or perhaps a song to speak to you? Being aware of how God speaks is equally important to when He answers them, and don't forget to give God praise for doing so.

Habakkuk 2:3 NIV

For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.

Friends, the more we focus on "how" God speaks to us the more we will recognize His voice and His ways. He answers our prayers in countless ways and it's helpful to look back to see how long it actually took for him to answer each prayer and what He used to answer them with because when you are struggling to trust God, your prayer journal will help renew your faith in Him, you'll even notice some prayers took longer than others!

Don't be foolish like Saul and make poor and hasty decisions just because you don't see God working on your timetable.

1 Samuel 13:1-15 NIV Samuel rebukes Saul

vs 11 "What have you done?" asked Samuel. Saul replied, "When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Micmash, vs 12 I thought, 'Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the Lord's favor.' So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering." vs 13 You acted foolishly," Samuel said. "You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. vs 14 But now your kingdom will not endure; the Lord has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him leader of his people, because you have not kept the Lord's command."

Remember God is in complete control and His timing is perfect, never doubt this for a moment!

Isaiah 55:8 NIV

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the Lord.

Written by: Jill Theriault

Crossroads Coaching - @crossroadscoachingongodstime