Delayed Notification

Jesus said to them, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working.”

John 5:17

Just last week I filed my income taxes on paper. I had to file with the IRS and two different states. Per my accountant’s recommendation, I sent them certified mail with return receipt. That way I know when my taxes get delivered and then I get proof that each office has received what I sent them. Being that they all went certified mail, I got a tracking number for each envelope, so naturally I wanted to track these. Particularly the one I expect a check back from, but also to know that I have record that my obligation to file was fulfilled.

So, I checked each day on the tracking. Initially, they all said “accepted at facility” and had an estimated delivery date of four days later. As the days went by, two of the envelopes arrived prior to the expected delivery date. (The one with the biggest return, of course, was the third envelope…) They were all expected to be delivered on Saturday, but as I watched throughout the weekend, the last tracking number still returned a result of “accepted at facility”. On Monday, however, this updated to show that it had been delivered on Friday, earlier than its expected date!

As I thought about this, I realized that’s how God is. He is always at work. The post office hadn’t forgotten about my envelope or left it sitting around. No, they were working to get it delivered early – I just couldn’t see that. In the same way God is always working in so many ways we cannot see. I personally struggle with this sometimes because I like to have visible, measurable results and when I don’t see progress, I begin to lose faith. But God’s Word tells us that He is always at work. It even promises in Philippians that He is at work in us always!

*God, thank you for always being at work. Thank you that you never sleep or slumber, but instead you are watching over us and working in our favor. You work to overcome evil in our lives. You work to move mountains we think are impossible to move. We praise you, Father, for always being at work. Please help us to remember this promise when we don’t see the ways you are at work. Help us to trust your timing in revealing your work. In Jesus’ Name. Amen!

Seen or unseen, God is always at work!