The Promises You Won't See - Tuesday Praise & Pray (for others) May 7, 2024

We spend so much time thinking about God's promises to us and how long we've got to wait for them to come to pass. There are plenty of books on this issue and there will be plenty more because it is an important topic.

However, What do you do when God gives you a promise that is not for you but for those who will come after you? Believe it or not, there are promises tied to you that are not for you. These could be promises for those who will come after you.

Abraham dealt with this issue. God made promises to him about his descendants. These were promises he would never see. It was the same with King David. He'd wanted to build a house for the Lord but was told that distinction would go to his son instead. Plus, the prophets of the Old Testament spoke of Jesus but none of them had the privilege of seeing Him.

Hebrews 11:13 - All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.

Somehow, these individuals held on to God despite knowing that there were promises they would likely never witness. Could we do the same? And if so, how would we manage? Would we be able to hold onto our faith knowing that there are promises we will never see?​

One key factor for the greats of the Bible was that they recognized the promises fulfilled in their lifetimes and relied on them as the foundation of their faith. Those miracles, plus what God had done for their ancestors, enabled them to hold on to God, believing that the rest of what He'd said would be fulfilled.

This is why we must acknowledge what God has done in our lives. The more aware we are of His miracles, the more aware we will be of how and when He fulfills His word to us. Furthermore, we can't afford to forget our Jericho Moments - those instances when God worked things out for us. We must hold on to them and allow these instances to fuel our conviction that God is able to do what He's done again. We must also lean into the testimonies of others to build our confidence in God's capabilities.

Finally, this is another reason why we cannot let go of the promises God has made to us. We can't choose to ignore them when waiting gets long and painful. Imagine if David had ignored God's promise that his son would build a temple. David would not have amassed the tools and other necessities for the temple's construction. Instead, he gathered what his son would need and handed the materials to Solomon to complete the task. He contributed to his descendant's ability to live and enjoy God's promise. He didn't need to, but doing so was just one more reason why God called David a man who pleased Him.

We want to please God too. And so, we must walk by faith and not by sight, holding on to God even when there are outstanding promises we are yet to witness and might never see. We have to hold on to the faithfulness God has displayed to us, knowing that He will not fail to watch over His word. He will ensure it is fulfilled. Not because of anything we've done or will do, but because He can't stop Himself from being faithful. Hallelujah!​