When we’re going somewhere with our three kids, their question is always “Why aren’t we going yet?”. Delivered in the midst of packing, preparing, and doing all the things needed to leave, this question is usually frustrating. Until the Lord reminded me of how this was actually a perfect picture of how He works with us. For those who have received a word and know the Lord has spoken that promise but are asking, “Why aren’t we going yet?”- this is a word for you.
The truth is, from a parental perspective, “going” requires a lot more than hopping in the car. We need to make sure we have gas in the car, that we’ve packed everything we need, that we’ve verified where we’re going is open, that everyone has eaten…the list goes on. This is all a part of “going”. The things I ask my children in these times of preparation (like “Can you please fill up a few water bottles and put them in the car?) seem like extra miscellaneous tasks, but it’s actually preparation. It’s not that we’re not going. It’s just the beginning phases that may not initially look like a moment of departure.
God has had the word “threshold” on my heart as a word for this season. As I pressed into it, “threshold” has several interesting meanings. According to the American Heritage Dictionary a few of the definitions of “threshold” are “either end of an airport runway”, “the point that must be exceeded to begin producing an effect or result to elicit a response”, and “a plank, stone, or timber which lies at the bottom of a door”. I believe each one of these definitions represents different “thresholds” being experienced by different parts of the body. Perhaps one of these is a confirmation for your season.
Looking at that first definition, God whispered, “Threshing times are both times of things taking off as well as things landing”. I have always only thought of thresholds as beginnings- and they are- but there are also things from old seasons that are “coming in for a landing”. For some, this season is about bringing things in for a landing and preparing for new things to take off. As with flying a plane, the landing is just as important- if not more so- as the takeoff. It’s not a time to be careless or give up, but to “finish well”.
Crossing the threshold also means a time, as the second definition suggests, of going “beyond a certain point”. For some, God has been calling you to draw a line in the sand, to cross over, or to go “all in”. Once you fully step into that place of obedience, there is going to be a palpable effect or response in your life. All that has been coming together will begin to be felt and seen as we continue to go deeper and deeper in faith.
The last definition- a stone or plank under a doorway- not only denotes a place of entrance into something new but also emphasizes what that entrance is built on. It reminds me of cornerstones, which aren’t often used in the way they were in the ancient world. In Biblical times, a cornerstone had to be completely square and positioned perfectly because everything built after that would either lean or be unstable if it wasn’t. For some, it’s felt like the Lord has been laying one tiny stone for a really long period of time. You’re wondering, “When are we moving on to more??”. The reason so much has gone into this season with little visible results is because this is a cornerstone season. Laying this precious cornerstone is like crossing a threshold. This time of training and preparation must be done right so that you can support all the Lord is wanting to rapidly build in your life after that point. Don’t despise small beginnings. God is doing it, but He wants to do it right.
God pointed out that there’s a “thresh” in threshold. Threshing is not a fun season for any of us. It’s a season of letting go, simplification, and pruning. If you’re feeling pressed or beaten down in this season, don’t be discouraged. Threshing is brief, and it never happens unless there is something to be harvested. There is something good ripe for use in your life that is just on the other side of threshing.
In the “threshold season” -that can feel at times exciting, overwhelming, distracting, confusing, or even like immense pressure- keep this encounter close to your heart: Ask the Lord, “Show me the divine appointments in what looks like distraction”. Let God, as a loving Father, point out the preparation we cannot see that shows us we are actually going where He said. This Heavenly perspective can turn times of waiting into times of training.
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
2 Peter 3:9
Comments