Sitting in a college classroom, one of the only ones I have ever seen, I learned about a business technique called "just in time inventory." It is a concept wherein a business decides early on not to stock a large amount of inventory, but instead to order in the items they need on a projected basis of what is or will potentially be sold within a predetermined time frame... Just in time. It saves on warehouse space, thirty day cash flow lag and a myriad of other smaller but far reaching effects. It's not an easy way to run a business, because it takes a fair amount of planning and a commitment to be very aware of your sales projections. But it has its advantages as well as its disadvantages, and when it is done right, it is a very efficient and cost effective way to operate.
While I understand the concept as it relates to my business life, I find myself very frustrated when I think about it in relation to my spiritual life. Yet, God is the absolute Master! He has it all figured out and omnipotence is His vantage point when He manages to give me exactly what I need at exactly the right time and in just the most perfect amount. Granted, I don't always see it that way. I seem to always be wanting just a little more, just a little earlier and I am forever seeking the next thing, often before the first item is fully realized!
Humankind is so very blind to the perfection that is God and His "Just in Time, Just Enough" approach to managing His children, and that very much includes me. I wish I could say I am only affected in the area of finances, but I would be struck dead for being so arrogant and blatantly dishonest. So often I find myself wishing for more in so many areas of my life.
I want more time, yet I don't seem to do much with any extra I might carve out. I want more in my relationships, however, I am often so distracted I allow my mind to wander and miss integral parts of the conversation. I always want more money... Yeah, we know how that goes.
So how do I handle it? How do I keep my covetous and discontented heart in check and how on earth do I stop taking the Lord's blessings for granted? No, really! I am asking...
Nothing?
I guess it is into the Word, I go then. When I truly look at the root source of my issues with not having "enough" of something I start to recognize worry is my core issue.
Worry. I grew up spending many wonderful hours with my grandparents and I recognize that some of my worry habits were born right there. Living with depression era survivors has its wonders and its issues. One of the issues is always being afraid that some day you will run out... Run out of food, run out of money, run out of everything! Because of these influences I have a definite need for security and I stock pile... But you can't always stock pile with God.
In Matthew 6:25-34 Jesus councils us against worry and the uselessness of it. I simply love the verse, "Who of you by worrying can add but a single hour to your life?" Ahem... Yeah! This is a verse I had once had committed to memory, and today I realize that I just may need to get out the index cards once again as a refresher course. God is going to give me just what I need, just when I need it and in just the right amount.
So there is not a single call to fret when I have only enough money to pay the bills and not enough to have "extra"... If I have to get creative with the shopping list, I often find recipes that the family loves and become monthly staples. If I cannot afford a weekly trip to the theater with our family of four (often totaling over $75), I learn that we are all just as content sitting out back gathered around the fire pit, roasting marshmallows and making s'mores.
Likewise, when I throw myself on the floor and pray through rivers of tears for a dire need that I cannot see any possibility of being met, I need to remember all the times before that God provided Just Enough, Just In Time. I have yet to be left truly out in the cold to the merciless jaws of the Enemy. God has always provided a way out or met the need head on. I am constantly forgetting how wonderfully He has provided for me, regardless of my faith. Every time He does, I am floored by just how perfect His provision is. Often He delivers so much more than I could have thought to ask for, so limited and fixed is my attention on what I don't have.
So when you are just sure that God isn't listening to you anymore and you know you are going to be sunk by the issue of not having enough... Try to call to mind all those times before when God not only met the need, but provided you with so much more. If you cannot recall to memory any of those times I challenge you to keep a log. Find a small notebook or even just a single page of paper. Draw a line down the middle. On one side title it "NEED", on the other side title it "MET/SOLUTION". When you have a need, date it and write it down. When God fulfills it, write down not only the date of its fulfillment, but HOW God decided to solve your problem. Once you fill that page with God answered issues, look back at it and thank Him one more time for being Jehovah Jireh, the God Who Provides
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