Sunday, June 13th was the day of my installation as pastor of Faith Lutheran Church in Powell, WY. In one sense, it was the culmination of a journey Mary and I started five years ago when we felt that God was calling me to attend The Master’s Institute Seminary. In another sense, it was just the beginning of a new journey. It was great to have Rev. Michael Bradley and Pastor Kevin and Laura McClure here to do the installation. Kevin and Laura have been a huge blessing to Mary and me over the years and Mike has become a good friend. This journey is helping us to learn that God’s timing is perfect.

I thought that once I graduated God would immediately call us into fulltime ministry. But He knew that I still needed to grow and receive more healing before I was ready.

We started conversations with Faith in the summer of 2008 and made plans to fly out to visit the congregation. When Pastor McClure and I returned from Chicago where we welcomed a church into the ARC, Mary said that she was having problems seeing out of her left eye. An appointment with her ophthalmologist revealed that she had a partially detached retina which required surgery later that day. Part of the surgery included injecting a gas bubble which helped hold the retina in place. This bubble aided the healing, but it also precluded any travel that involved a change in elevation. When Satan was trying to convince Mary that this had thwarted God’s plans, I felt that God was reassuring us saying, “My timing is perfect.” The problem is that even when we hear God speak we don’t take His words to heart.

When you are waiting for God’s perfect timing, you may become resentful that He isn’t moving as fast as you want Him to. I sure did. I started to resent The Master’s Institute for not getting me placed and wanted nothing to do with it. Can you imagine God wanting to inflict that kind of pastor on a congregation? Last summer, Mary wanted to go to the ARC Gathering in Huntington Beach and I reluctantly went with her. That gathering was pivotal in my receiving healing. I felt forgotten. The theme of the gathering was, Not Forgotten. The first day, Robert Walter came over to speak to me. That simple act began a release of feelings that lead to repentance and healing.

Once we accepted the call to Faith, we saw many instances of God’s perfect timing. Our house sold in six weeks. We found a house here in one day. Both the closings and the move went incredibly smooth.

We are starting to see how God has used this time in ways we never expected. Mary will be able to use her Elijah House Prayer Ministry training not only to help individuals but also to assist a member of our congregation in bringing Elijah House training to this area.

Before we arrived, the members of the congregation had to assume many of the duties that are usually reserved for the pastor. My continual goal is to empower them to keep doing many of these things so that we truly are the priesthood of all believers.

Saying that God’s timing is perfect is easy. Living it out is more difficult. We will keep seeking the will of God through the person of the Holy Spirit so that we are in step with God’s perfect timing. If you are waiting for your next kingdom assignment, you can be assured that--God’s timing is perfect.