January can seem to creep by at a snail’s pace. The days are short, but the weeks seem slow to pass. After the rush of the holiday season, slowing down and taking inventory is a good idea. 

One of God’s most common attributes seems to be his tendency to move at a slower pace than we would choose. We pray, and if the answer is “wait,” we feel as if something is wrong.

It's important to remember that when God hears our prayers, his answers begin. God knows immediately what he plans to do, but his answer is often a process. Often our journey to God’s answer is what matters more than the answer itself.

God’s plans always have an eternal purpose. That perspective causes us to notice his work in our lives. Peter reminded the church of God’s perspective on time, saying that one day was like a thousand years or a thousand years like one day with the Lord. God doesn’t measure time on a calendar; instead, it's more of a checklist. God is slow because God is perfectly completing our answer.

The month of January is a good month to experience the patience needed to wait for spring. So much in nature appears to be frozen and lifeless. But, the promise of spring is fulfilled each year, in God’s timing.

We wait with hope because God’s promises are always guaranteed by his character. The Lord isn’t slow to fulfill his promise. He is perfectly working to bring it about. Your prayers have been answered, but it's the journey to that answer that feels like the “wait.”

Every Christian is waiting for the return of Jesus. Someone will be the last person to receive Christ as their Lord and Savior, and then Jesus will return. What if the last person to be saved is the person you share Christ with tomorrow?

God isn’t slow to fulfill his promise, and he isn’t slow to answer our prayers. He is just perfectly completing his checklist in his flawless timing. It’s our journey to his answer that is often the answer itself.

Knowing God is the beginning of wisdom. Know that God is answering your prayers right now, even as you wait to recognize his work in your life.