“And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men” (Luke 2:52, NIV).
Even Jesus had to grow. Of course, we take it for granted that He grew physically. Clearly, He couldn’t stay a baby if He were to become the Savior of the world. He needed an adult body. However, have we spent time meditating on the truth stated here, that He also grew in an internal way? He increased in wisdom at the same time that He increased in height and weight.
If Luke is telling us that He gained wisdom, this means that there was a point when He had less of it. I find this wonderfully encouraging! If even the only begotten Son of God needed to go through a growth process, then you and I are not alone. Jesus showed us the way. It’s okay to not have all the wisdom we need yet. Like Him, we can joyfully engage with the growth process, confident that wisdom will continue to increase in our lives as we do so.
In this same chapter, we find a little story that gives us a clue into what our growth process is to look like. We get a brief glimpse at the twelve-year-old version of Jesus. His family is visiting Jerusalem for the Passover. Something very telling happens on this trip. He experiences a powerfully compelling heart tug towards the teaching ministry in the house of God. This experience is so powerful, in fact, that He stays behind in Jerusalem when His clan has headed back home.
Jesus’ destiny is already stirring inside of Him. He knows on the inside that He was born to be about His Father’s business. These invigorating moments in the temple are stimulating gifts that are an innate part of Him. No doubt, joyfully energy pulsates through His soul as He interacts with the teachers.
However, it’s not time yet. Joseph and Mary come to take him away from that place. The season has not yet come for full activation of His gifts and ministry. What does Jesus do? He recognizes the wisdom in His parents. He submits. And He waits eighteen more years for it to be time for the launch into His destiny. As those years go by, He grows. He increases in wisdom and favor with God and men. He undergoes the growth process just like you and I need to do.
Then, when the time is exactly right, Daddy God presents Him to the world. “This is My beloved Son…” thunders His voice from heaven. And full-time ministry begins. Destiny begins to unfold.
Do you feel like you are in a holding pattern? Do you feel like the authentic expression of who you are is stirring inside of you, and yet not finding its outlet? Take heart, dear one. Daddy has a flawless timeline for your destiny too.
If it’s not time yet for the activation of everything that’s inside of you, continue to actively wait on Him in submission. You are undergoing a growth process. Immeasurably vital changes are taking place inside of you. You are increasing in wisdom and favor. This may be taking quite a bit longer than you ever anticipated. However, at exactly the right moment, the time for full initiation and unveiling will indeed arrive. The purpose you were born for will begin to unfold…
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What is your sense of where you are on Daddy’s timeline? Is it comforting to know that even Jesus needed to wait until the proper time?
Feeding On Jesus 
This is very encouraging. To wait on God and His perfect timing. And in the process may we grow spiritually and be shaped to be ready for whatever God has purposed for us.
Thank you Jennifer 🌺
Blessings to you sis 💙.
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Smiling with joy and love, and receiving those blessings gratefully! So much grace and peace to you today, Manu! 🤗💕
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Wow! I REALLY needed to read this today. It is confirmation for me. I just wrote my Blog about Jesus turning the water to wine at the Wedding Feast in Episode five of THE CHOSEN, which also included a scene about Jesus in the temple at 12. It was all about timing. It wasn’t Jesus’time yet…until it was. Everything is better when it’s the right time…GOD’S TIME.
I am getting ready to launch my book, GREEN SKIES and HOLY WHISPERS, which is God’s story woven within my story of healing and forgiveness after a childhood of abuse, neglect and sexual molestation. It has taken an enormous amount of years and healing to complete but God just kept telling me to “Be patient. It’s not time yet” …and now it is. His perfect timing is always best and the journey to where I am today was worth the wait.
Thank you for sharing your inspiring words with us. God bless. VICTORIA
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Aww, thank You JESUS for Your goodness! I am so, so blessed to know that this was encouraging for you, Victoria! And wow!! I am so excited for your book launch! Celebrating with you His perfect timing, my dear sister! 🌹😊💖
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“On Daddy’s timeline?” Well, I may be nearing its end, at 69 years old. Then again, Father may keep me here for a couple of decades. But I am ready any time He chooses to call me Home, and that longing grows with each year.
“Oh, I want to see Him, look upon His face,
There to sing forever of His saving grace;
On the streets of glory let me lift my voice,
Cares all past, home at last, ever to rejoice.” by Rufus H. Cornelius
https://library.timelesstruths.org/music/Oh_I_Want_to_See_Him/
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Wow. There truly are groanings which words cannot express, aren’t there my dear brother? Thank you for sharing something so precious!
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Waiting can be the hardest thing to do. When we really want something, but it seems so far away. Around the corner, maybe many corners, God will guide us to where we need to be at the exact right time. His time.
Thank you for sharing this. 😊
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Goodness is that true! I was telling my youngest daughter the other day, “Life has a lot of waiting in it, so you better get used to it” 😀 . Hehe, maybe not the most sympathetic thing I ever said to her, but at the same time, ain’t it the truth?? Sooooooooooo much waiting, sooooooooooo much more than was ever my personal preference! But I am indescribably grateful for the way that God has grown me through the waiting processes. How abundant is His grace!
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