"Not yet." I heard the quiet voice. It was in response to double checking with God on moving forward on a project that had been forming over a year’s time period. It really wasn’t my project, it was more His but something fun and creative. Over the months, I’d acquired all the things I needed to complete it. The project needed an artist or graphic designer, and someone to legitimately put it together so I needed help from a couple of professionals. I’d called them both 6 months before. I knew both of the women really well. One said she’d get back to me and never did…. the other just didn’t return my phone call regarding it which was highly unusual. I wanted to be totally open to God’s timing so I put it on the back burner of my life.
Recently, I’d felt it was time to try again so I made an appointment with one of the ladies and she could see me the same day. Maybe that was a sign but I still submitted it all to God….and that’s when I heard the “Not yet.” See, I heard that same phrase a lot and I figured God was teaching me to be patient. To sit and wait so I wanted to be obedient.
In my past (PJ-pre-Jesus) I did things my way and then, once I started following God, I still had the tendency to get ahead of Him. That “Not yet” had saved me from doing a lot of stupid things. God didn’t try to “break” my will but I had through this process learned to submit my will to Him. I rarely made a move without asking Him and if I realized I had moved ahead, I quickly put my butt in reverse and put it in park so I could reset with Him. His ways are always.always.always best so I’d learn to HEEL when I heard “Not yet.”
I felt the timing was right with God on moving forward and felt the timing was His so I was confused… Not yet? What was this voice in my head? God, do you want me to do this or not? The voice didn’t feel like the enemy’s and it didn’t feel like God’s either even though it kinda sounded like how God spoke to Elijah in the still, small voice.
A girlfriend texted me and said she saw some black bars in front of my face like I was in a jail but the keys were in my hand. I quickly picked up the phone to call her. I mean I had JUST asked Him about the “not yet” thing. While she was telling me about her vision, I looked at a little bumper sticker thing that was right in front of my face - it said “She believed she could so she did.” That was it! In my spirit, I felt it.
The “Not yet” was coming from unbelief in MYSELF. I was trapped in a prison of my own unbelief.
I did not believe that I could do this. It was the still small echo of unbelief probably rooted in rejection that I could NOT possibly create anything valuable or worthy with my past.
Oh I believed God could do it.
I could believe it for anyone else but not for me.
I prayed for God to confirm that was in fact the answer and that I did need to move forward. Later that day I went to a spin class. The instructor said, “You have got to believe in yourself. You have to believe you CAN do it.”
Well, I had submitted this voice in my head to God and He had revealed that I had unbelief…not in Him but in myself in a few different ways.
See these little voices in our head that we think are God are sometimes NOT God. They can be based on doubt and unbelief. They can be based on gaining glory for ourselves. They can be grandiose ideas based on trying to give ourselves meaning or value, they can clearly be the devil-lies causing shame, anxiety and harm, it can be a worldly wisdom, logic reasoning versus God’s plan.
How do we REALLY know when we are hearing from God? Why does it have to be so complicated? It does take time. A foundation of truth and love have to be set in place before we are ready to build so many of my “Not yets” might have been on point. Sometimes we are moving about when God is asking us to sit- like my little puppy running here and there and wrapping his little leash up until he can’t move and has trapped himself and then he HAS to sit.
I do think we have to do some serious investigating of these voices though rather than jump to the conclusion they are our Father.
We gotta LEARN
to DISCERN (yay-that rhymes #catchphrase)
Oh, guys, if this proves ANYTHING it means you cannot hang on to the first scripture you think of-you have to SEEK God every moment as if He is your breath. We’ve got to dig deeper in relationship with Him and remove things that give us misperceptions. We have to ask Him and get to the bottom of these voices leading us and we can’t only ask God when it’s something we DON’T want to do or is big. The things we want to do and the things we don’t. The things that seem “good” and those that might be “dangerous.” The safest place to be is in the will of God.(someone else said that;) We need to submit every step. Every conversation. Every part of our day until we are so in tune with His instructions that we become fluent in it and trustworthy only to do what the Father is doing and only to say what the Father is saying. Otherwise, we will make big messes. If you are on the seal team and on a mission and you don’t follow the plan and stay in sync with your team then people die. Don’t use this as a permission to bypass God’s “Not yet.” Learn to listen and discern for yourself what He is saying to you. The plans of God for your life require that you stay in step with Him so don’t just believe every voice you hear.
- Ask God, “Is that you?” Really spend time with Him on it.
- Does it line up with God’s word, His heart, His character?
- Ask Him to confirm it with an outside source. (like a bumper sticker, friend or a cycle instructor;)
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