Be Patient; Your Time Will Come
Luke 2:51-52
And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.
There are several stages that Christ went through before His nationwide ministry. You find that He was first under His parents and was subject to them, then He spent time increasing in wisdom and stature, then He became in favor with God and man, and then He gained a nationwide ministry. Had Jesus become impatient with the process of getting to the nationwide ministry, He would have never had a nationwide ministry. Every stage in His life was critical to preparing for the next stage.
I often talk to young preacher boys who want to get a nationwide ministry without going through the training stages for that type of ministry. When I hear the impatience of these preacher boys and their wanting to quit early, I am reminded of myself when I was a younger preacher wanting to do the same. I am thankful for an older preacher who told me to be patient with the process God was sending me through, because God knew my name, my number, and where I lived, and He would call me to that nationwide ministry when He knew I was ready for it.
You cannot become impatient with the process. That process is critical to you becoming who you need to be before God can allow you to have that type of influence. If you miss one stage in God's process, you will miss one tool needed for when He gives you a bigger ministry. Let me share a few thoughts about the importance of this principle.
First, if you can't learn to be subject to the people over you, you will never be used mightily by God. You will only be as good a leader as you are a follower. Being subject to someone reveals your character to follow the authorities in your life. When you become a leader, you have nobody who can stop you, but only the authorities that God has placed in your life, which is His Word. God will know if He can trust you with the authority of His Word as you lead if you are able to be subject to the followers when you're younger.
Second, if you can't increase when you are subject to authorities, you definitely won't increase when you are a leader. Too many want to jump out and do something without having built anything. Build something when you are subject to authorities, because that proves both to you and to others that you can build something.
Third, while you are building something, gather all the wisdom from those you are under so that when you are the leader, you can use it to help others. Don't be so proud that you can't ask for wisdom. The person who is too proud to ask for wisdom on how to do things and to follow that wisdom when they are under someone will be too proud to follow God's way when they are leading.
Fourth, God will promote you in stature with man if you have the ability to be subject to your authorities, build something, and have the wisdom to help others. If you get busy doing what you are supposed to do and stick with it, God will prepare you for that very moment that He has put you on this earth to do. God will be able to use you in that position to the potential He has planned for you if you would take these steps and follow them until He calls you into that life purpose for which He made you.
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