It's All In The Timing

Timing. It’s all a matter of timing.

If we’re standing ten feet apart and you toss me a football, there isn’t too much of an issue in timing if I’m to catch the ball. But if I’m running down the football field with two defenders at my heels, and you throw the ball to a spot 30 yards away, there has to be excellent timing if I’m to catch that ball without breaking my stride. Timing.

Or consider a toad flicking its tongue out and catching a passing housefly. What about a diver getting his or her body into just that right position to split the surface of the water with hardly a ripple? Timing.

The Scriptures are full of promises the Lord has given us. Promises of protection. Promises that He will supply our need. Promises that He’ll come again. Promises. Timing. The two go hand in hand.

I don’t believe in fate. I don’t believe in circumstances. I am convinced that the Lord plays an active role in our lives daily. He arranges opportunities for us to nurture and to be nurtured, to encourage and to be encouraged, to find examples and to be an example. It’s all in the timing.

Jesus didn’t just “happen” to be passing by the entrance to the village of Nain. He timed it to bring relief to a grief-stricken mother. It wasn’t happenstance that He was in town the day Jairus needed Him, either.

Nor was He at the well in mid-day by accident. If He had come in the middle of the morning or the middle of the afternoon, the Samaritan woman wouldn’t have encountered a Jewish male who treated her with respect, something she didn’t receive from the other women in her village. It was all in the timing, and a whole village accepted the Messiah.

The men’s chorus I sing with makes appointments to do church services, especially in smaller churches that may not attract larger performing groups or more important speakers. A number of years ago, we’d tried to arrange an appointment out west of Cleveland, but didn’t seem to be able to find a date that was suitable. Finally, one fall we set a date for late the following spring. Two months before we were to go, the church got a new pastor who wanted to organize his own program and we were dumped. We tried again the following year, and again had our appointment cancelled.

Two years after that, we tried again, and, somewhat to our surprise, we actually kept the appointment. During the preliminaries, it was announced that a member had passed away during the week. None of us knew the gentleman, and didn’t give much thought to the announcement. After the service, our group was standing around in the foyer visiting with the members of the congregation when four or five of us had the same experience. A small, white-haired lady in a shawl came up and said to each of us, “The Lord knew what I needed this morning. My husband passed away last night.” Timing.

Those of us who were there are convinced that the Lord didn’t “need” us at that particular church two and three years earlier. He needed us there that morning.

Timing. It’s all in the timing. It’s all in HIS timing. Who needs more than that?
Dr. G