God Prepares His Servant|5 Things To Do Before Deployment

God takes His time to prepare His servants for ministry.

A Chinese bamboo seed takes five years to break, germinate and rise out of the ground. Every day it’s watered and fertilized and nothing seems to change.

In the fifth year, the seed breaks and the shoot grows upward approximately one inch every forty minutes. That’s growth on steroids.

Bamboo is stronger than steel and it’s used for bicycle frames and in construction. Its fibre makes clothes, sheets and towels because of its antibacterial qualities. All these and more uses would not be possible without the five years of silent and dark underground growth.

Imagine you’re seated in your office at work when a prophet appears and anoints you to lead your nation yet your country’s president is still in power. But it remains a secret. Then the news gets to the president that you’re brilliant in your career so he calls you to serve in his office.

Because you succeed in every assignment he gives you, he soon becomes insecure and jealous. When your country gets attacked, the president deploys you with his army to destroy the enemies of the state. After your victory, the president decides enough is enough; he has to assassinate you.

Fortunately, his son is your best friend, and he helps you escape with a few men from the army.

The president doesn’t forget about you but pursues you in the neighbouring country where you sought refuge. On two occasions, you’re in a position to kill him because of his bodyguard’s inefficiency but you don’t pull the trigger because you regard him as God’s anointed.

For over twelve years, you live as a rebel and fugitive before the president dies and then the people vote you to become their next president. Your name is King David.

In another scenario, imagine you’re in your teens and begin having dreams of becoming a great person in the land. Even your parents and older siblings bow before you. Naively, you share these dreams with your siblings who envy you and decide to sell you off as a slave to a far land.

Life gets tough.

In the foreign land, you get an opportunity to work for an important man in the land. His wife has a crush on you but because you refuse to sleep with her, she frames you for rape. You are thrown in to prison but with God’s help, your gift of understanding and interpreting dreams brings you before the most powerful man in the land.

He is so impressed with your wisdom that he makes you the Prime Minister. A few years later, your siblings who sold you come to ask for your help and bow before you. Your name is Joseph.

 Benefits of Proactive Waiting

Waiting for the fulfilment of God’s plan for your life is one of the toughest and most trying experiences in life.

Patience is painful. Waiting is hard.

Like soldiers who go through harsh training before going to battle and athletes who discipline themselves before a race, we too must go through training before God deploys us into our assignments.

Many years ago, Rob Brendle introduced me to the idea of proactive waiting in his book, In the meantime: the practice of proactive waiting. He defines proactive waiting as “trusting, seeking and looking to God for the dream’s fulfilment while we seek to grow, stretch and forge usable tools for the future from the raw iron of life’s unalterable seasons.”

A careful look at how God works in the Bible reveals a God who approaches men or women He wants to use, initiates an awareness of His assignment for their lives and takes them through years of training and waiting. If you were David or Joseph, what would you do in the meantime before your dreams or God’s purpose come to pass?

Waiting prepares your heart to handle what God will soon put into your hand. It transforms your mindset so you can focus on the right things, the things that really matter. If something good dropped into your hands too early, it might overwhelm you, steal your heart and cause you to worship it.

Like the Bamboo tree that needs constant watering and fertilization before tangible results, God breaks your heart before the breakthrough.

When your dream is hidden from view, God is squeezing out and uprooting the lies you have believed about life, pride, independence, ego and sins that would hinder the fulfilment of His purpose for your life. Then He plants in you truth, humility, dependence on Him and holiness.

You may be in a career, church or country you don’t like. You may sense you’re not living the life you were meant to live. But if you trust God, be sure you’re right where you need to be by His schedule.

In the undesirable, boring and dark place where you are, God is shaping your character to become the person He wants you to be.

When Sarah mistreated Haggar and she ran away to the desert, she almost died with her son because of thirst. She called on God and He rescued her.

“You are the God who sees me,” she declared,

El Roi – means the God who sees me (Genesis 16:13)

God sees you too.

We crash wheat to make bread; we squeeze grapes to make wine and; we knead and burn clay to make bricks and pots! Someone said that God does not bless a man fully until He has conquered Him entirely. Has God conquered you?

If a person resists this kind of crushing, pruning and squeezing, their end won’t be pleasant!

God uses broken and holy vessels. “If you keep yourself pure, you will be a special utensil for honorable use. Your life will be clean, and you will be ready for the Master to use you for every good work.” (2 Timothy 2:21) We often hear in the news of successful people who blew it at the height of their achievement. You don’t want that!

 Our Big Problem: We Think We Know Better

Motivational speakers tell us to take charge of our destiny. They claim positive thinking or the law of attraction will get us whatever we want and if we work smart and never give up, we shall achieve our goals every time.

I wonder how many people believe such empty and false promises, and go down to their graves disappointed? It’s no wonder some Christians are shocked when they don’t receive what they want or ask from God as if God owes them and must repay them. “Who has given me anything that I need to pay back? Everything under heaven is mine.” (Job 41:11)

They forget this truth; we’re incapable of knowing what we really need without God’s help. And we’re not in charge of our lives. “It’s not in our power to plan the course of our lives or control our destiny.” (Jeremiah 10:23, Daniel 5:23)

Many times, I’ve made decisions I thought were in my best interest only to crash and come back before God ashamed and in tears. “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end, it leads to death.” (Proverbs 14:12)

 What To Do As We Wait For God’s Deployment

 #1: Allow God To Change The Way We Think So We Can See Life From His Perspective

Only the Word of God can change the deepest parts of our lives. Then shall we be able to recognize His good and pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:1-2)

This may require sharpening your skills or going back to school. Even when you have no opportunity for formal training, you can study your Bible and borrow books so you can know God and yourself better. Have you developed the 7 must have life skills that are not fully taught in church and school?

 #2: Seek God’s Perfect Will, Not His Permissive Will

Forcing or begging God to do as we please can get us what we want but with negative consequences. For instance, the Israelites wanted a king to become like other nations and missed having God as their King.

Years earlier they had complained and asked for meat but it came with a plague. (Numbers 11:33) But God’s blessing adds no sorrow. (Proverbs 10:22)

 #3: Seek God’s Counsel Even In Seemingly Small Decisions

Whenever we’re making decisions about business, marriage, which neighbourhood to live, and where to take our children to school, among others, let us involve God.

David was indeed a man after God’s heart because he inquired of the Lord most of the time.

When the Amalekites raided David’s camp and took their wives and properties, he didn’t rush to attack them but asked the Lord, “Should I chase them? Will I catch them?”

And the Lord told him, “Yes, go after them. You will surely recover everything that was taken from you!” (1 Samuel 30:8)

Sometime later, “… news came to David that the Philistines were at Keilah stealing grain from the threshing floors. David asked the Lord, “Should I go and attack them?”

“Yes, go and save Keilah,” the Lord told him. (1 Samuel 23:1-2)

After saving the town, Saul learned David was at Keilah. He gathered his forces to go down to Keilah and trap David and his men. David didn’t rely on the assurances of the men of Keilah he had rescued to protect him, instead, he asked the Lord whether they will hand him over to Saul.

“Will the men of Keilah surrender me to him? And will Saul actually come as I have heard? O Lord, God of Israel, please tell me.”

And the Lord said, “He will come.” Again, David asked, “Will these men of Keilah really betray me and my men to Saul?”

And the Lord replied, “Yes, they will betray you.” (1 Samuel 23:11-12) Then David left Keilah.

David passed the 10 Tests before he became a great leader.

Let me share with you what we experienced a few years ago.

My wife and I felt sorry for a single mother in our church who needed a home to stay. I suggested we bring her to our two-bedroomed rented house. But we prayed about it first. That night my wife dreamt that a big snake had entered into our house. We sensed God was warning us against taking her in.

Weeks later we learnt that she got into trouble wherever she stayed and often left on bad terms and told lies about her hosts. I believe God saved us from unnecessary heartache.

Every time you do anything without inquiring of the Lord, you’re declaring, “I know what I am doing.” And that’s usually a failure even before you start.

If God doesn’t go with you to war, you’re defeated before the fight. That’s what happened to the Israelites when they went to war but their enemies battered and chased them like a person running from a swarm of bees. They returned to their homes, wept and because of that, they stayed in that place for a long time. (Deuteronomy 1:26-46)

Please study these scriptures about God’s willingness to guide us into His will. (Proverbs 3:5-6, Jeremiah 33:3, Psalms 37:23, John 16:13-14)

 #4: Wait Patiently As God Prepares Us For His Assignments

The key training and lessons of life come through the normal day-to-day activities of life. The situations that will build a firm foundation of faith and character in us will often come dressed in the overalls of service, testing and suffering.

God prepared Abraham (25 years), Joseph (13 years), David (13 years), Moses (80 years), and Paul (14 years). Because of His assignment for their lives, God separated all these men from their normal and comfortable environment so He could prepare them thoroughly.

Likewise, don’t be surprised or resist when God moves you out of your usual life or comfort zone. It’s part of His process to pour out the old thinking and ways of doing things, so He can fill you with His Word, build your character, help you grow in your purpose and clarify His assignment for your life.

If you’re not yet sure of your purpose and assignment, please read this article; WHY AM I HERE?|Know The Purpose & Assignment of Your Life

Remember, God is more concerned about your character than your accomplishments. Character always precedes commissioning. The process of preparation is more important than the position God will give you. And trials or tests that require endurance are God’s tools for character acquisition. What better time than now, to develop character? “And it is good for people to submit to the yoke of his discipline at an early age.” (Lamentation 3:27)

Don’t despair under God’s discipline. Allow Him to shape you, crush you, prune you, purify you, sharpen you and you’ll come out strong and complete, ready to serve and soar like the eagle.

The author of Hebrews writes, “No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening – it is painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.” (Hebrews 12:11)

So, relax. Let God prepare you first. What will be the point of promoting you and giving you resources, recognition or accomplishments now, only to fail because you were immature to handle it? After all, the Hebrew proverb says, “Grapes picked too early don’t even make good vinegar.”

I’ve seen and heard of well-meaning, focused people who tried to make it in life without God but lost everything and finished terribly.

But you, my dear friend, can finish strong for “finishing is better than starting. Patience is better than pride.” (Ecclesiastes 7:8)

 #5: Wait For God To Act On Our Behalf

The Red Sea moments when we get stuck and surrounded come to us all. This is when we’ve done everything we know how and nothing changes.

In one episode of rejection from a girl I loved, I felt helpless and hopeless. I had tried all tricks possible to win her heart, but she was immovable like mount Everest. I didn’t know what to do anymore.

One day in my Bible reading, I came across this verse; “For since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him!” (Isaiah 64:4) I learnt to wait was not being idle. God works as I wait. A few years later, I met a wonderful girl to marry. God gave me what I needed at the right time.

Waiting on God to act on your behalf is a pure demonstration of faith, trust, reliance and confidence in Him. In such times, God becomes your Deliverer, Redeemer, Defender, Restorer and Vindicator.

When you lift your hands in surrender and focus on God alone, you’re nearing deliverance. “This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel says: “Only in returning to me and resting in me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength…” (Isaiah 30:15)

When God says the waiting is over, He makes a way through the red sea, causes streams to flow in the desert and scatters your enemies in different directions. When He delivers you in His way and perfect timing, you won’t claim the victory, saying, ‘I did it.’ But you’ll return all the glory to Him who delivered you, saying, ‘He did it.”

God takes time to prepare those He will use for His glory. The process of shaping your character, knowing God personally and understanding humble service makes you a vessel of honour. See Him as a potter who knows exactly what He is moulding.

When you look at the clay in His hands and see the shapeless lump of clay on the table, you can’t figure out what He is up to. But as He makes progress, a clear picture of what He is making begins to manifest.

Waiting on God feels like a demotion, delay and detention. However, as a child of God, you should never be idle or jobless – because you have the important duty of growing in your general purpose, specific assignment using your gifts, talents and skills to serve others. This job doesn’t cease as long as you breathe! And it pays highly in God’s currency!

Thank you for reading this article. I welcome your comments and questions – as iron sharpens iron, let’s sharpen each other.

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Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Bible illustrations are from Sweet Publishing; http://sweetpublishing.com/freebibleimages.org