"(…) but time and chance happeneth to them all" Ecclesiastes 9:11

Beloved,

When we make a request to someone, "not now" is certainly not the kind of answer we hope for, even though it is one of the possible responses. Someone once said that no matter how close the restroom is, the paths that lead to it always seem long for anyone who is suffering from issues that require frequent and sometimes urgent visits. Similarly, "not now" sounds like a distant promise to anyone whose needs seem to require immediate attention and solution. But God, who knows the end of a thing before its beginning, sometimes prefers to tell us, "My son/my daughter, what you are asking of Me, you cannot have it now—not because I am unable to give it to you, but because it could potentially destroy you NOW."

Indeed, what parent would give a car to their five-year-old child just because they asked for it? Even if the parent had the means to fulfill their child's request, they would refrain from doing so in the child’s own best interest. Our God, who is the perfect model of a parent, acts in the same way toward us when we make certain requests of Him.

For example, a pastor, who was already particularly anointed, prayed for an even greater level of anointing, even though he had not yet completely overcome his tendency toward anger. When God answered him, "Not now," the pastor sought to understand why, and God told him, "I am still working on you, and soon you will be mature enough to better handle what you are asking for. Otherwise, what you are asking for, if I give it to you now, will negatively affect those around you and ultimately destroy you."

The pastor recounted that at the moment God answered him this way, two incidents had occurred, one of which involved a young pastor working under him who had lied to his face. Multiple times, he told the young pastor that he was lying, but the latter stuck to his story. Out of anger, the senior pastor then said, "Because you are lying to me, I release the spirit of death upon you." Immediately, the young pastor fell down and died. It took the intervention of the senior pastor's wife for the young man to come back to life.

Do not be discouraged by God's "Not Now!" Understand that time is associated with anything you expect from Him. In due time, He will respond to you. God bless you.