Exodus 20:5 You must never worship or bow down to them, for I, the LORD your G-d, am a jealous G-d who will not share your affection with any other god! I do not leave unpunished the sins of those who hate me, but I punish the children for the sins of their parents to the third and fourth generations .

Other “gods” or idols in our lives could include money, hobbies, sports, TV, work, or anything else that competes with G-d for His rightful number one spot in your life.

From G-d’s point of view, what are the idols in your life?

Matthew 6:24  "No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both G-d and money.

G-d always answers your prayer. But His answers are not always what you would expect. 

Daniel 10:12  Then he said, "Don't be afraid, Daniel . Since the first day you began to pray for understanding and to humble yourself before your G-d, your request has been heard in heaven . I have come in answer to your prayer .

Sometimes He says “yes”, sometimes “no”, sometimes “wait”, or “not yet” . But G-d’s timing and purposes when answering your prayers are always perfect . Let’s look at a Scriptural example and examine it both through our limited vision and understanding, and then through G-d’s eyes:

John 11:3-7,11-15,38-45  So the two sisters sent a message to Yeshua telling Him, "Lord, the one you love is very sick . " But when Yeshua heard about it He said, "Lazarus's sickness will not end in death . No, it is for the glory of G-d . I, the Son of G-d, will receive glory from this . "  Although Yeshua loved Martha, Mary , and Lazarus, He stayed where He was for the next two days and did not go to them .  Finally after two days, He said to His disciples, "Let's go to Judea again . " 11 Then He said, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but now I will go and wake him up . " The disciples said, "Lord, if he is sleeping, that means he is getting better!" They thought Yeshua meant Lazarus was having a good night's rest, but Yeshua meant Lazarus had died .  Then He told them plainly, "Lazarus is dead .  And for your sake, I am glad I wasn't there, because this will give you another opportunity to believe in Me . Come, let's go see him . " 38 …Then they came to the grave . It was a cave with a stone rolled across its entrance . "Roll the stone aside," Yeshua told them . But Martha, the dead man's sister, said, "Lord, by now the smell will be terrible because he has been dead for four days . "  Yeshua responded, "Didn't I tell you that you will see G-d's glory if you believe? So they rolled the stone aside . Then Yeshua looked u p t o heaven and said, "Father, thank you for hearing Me . You always hear Me, but I said it out loud for the sake of all these people standing here, so they will believe You sent Me . " Then Yeshua shouted, "Lazarus,come out!" And Lazarus came out, bound in graveclothes, his face wrapped in a headcloth . Yeshua told them, "Unwrap him and let him go!"  Many of the people who were with Mary believed in Yeshua when they saw this happen .  

If you were Lazarus’s sisters Mary or Martha, and you were praying for Lazarus to get well, when he died wouldn’t you have said your prayer was unanswered? How would you have felt about G-d at that moment?

Yes, in fact you might even have been mad at G-d . But their prayer WAS answered with “wait” or “not yet” . G-d’s higher purpose was for many to see Yeshua bring Lazarus back from the dead so that more people would believe and be atoned .  We MUST remember that G-d knows the future . He created the big picture . He really does already know what the outcome of each situation is . The question is will you constantly try to change what He has determined to be the best course of action and events? Yes, until you decide to be a servant . Or will you find peace and security in following His perfect will, even when your limited vision says this course of action is wrong . (You can’t see the future and you don’t know how one action will affect another . )

Isaiah 46:9,10 And do not forget the things I have done throughout history. For I am G-d – I alone! I am G-d, and there is no one else like me. Only I can tell you what is going to happen even before it happens. Everything I plan will come to pass, for I do whatever I wish.

Rabbi Sha’ul (Paul) was a major persecutor of the Messianic Jewish Believers. He had the support of the Jewish leadership. But he was out of G-d’s will, and G-d through Yeshua stopped him on the road to Damascus. 

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