And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Son of man, what is this proverb that you people have about the land of Israel, which says, ‘The days are prolonged, and every vision fails’? Tell them therefore, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “I will lay this proverb to rest, and they shall no more use it as a proverb in Israel.” But say to them, “The days are at hand, and the fulfillment of every vision.  For no more shall there be any false vision or flattering divination within the house of Israel. For I am the Lord. I speak, and the word which I speak will come to pass; it will no more be postponed; for in your days, O rebellious house, I will say the word and perform it,” says the Lord God. Ezekiel 12:21-25 NKJV

With the promises of God, you cannot put God on the clock or a timetable, choosing to believe, and then stop believing because of time. Time is a measurement of the progression of events—measured in minutes, hours, days, months, and years. Time can be your friend or your enemy. Time is a friend if you use time to thank and praise God and continue to act on His Word. It’s an enemy if it seduces you into apathy and indifference, doubt and unbelief because of what you do not see or hear. So, you might ask how long will it take for God’s promise to manifest in your life? And God says, “Not long.”

There are three likely reactions to the promises of God: faith, foolishness, and presumption. Faith believes and sees the answer (2 Cor. 5:7). Foolishness rebels against the answer in unbelief (Ezek. 12:2). And, presumption predetermines the answer and outcome—deciding when, where and how the promise should manifest.

As stated in the text above, God doesn’t prolong His Word, He hastens it and watches over it to perform it (Jer. 1;12). So you might ask, “Why has it taken so long?”  “So long” is a measurement of time, not eternity. God operates in Kairos and not Chronos (Greek words for “time”). Chronos is a space of time (e.g., see John 5:6) and Kairos is a set time or proper time, based on God’s eternal plan (e.g., see Matt. 8:29). No matter how long, as measured in time, God’s Word doesn’t return to Him empty, fruitless, and unfulfilled (Isaiah 55:11).  The Word that God speaks “will come to pass; it will no more be postponed . . . [God] will say the word and perform it” (Ezek. 12:25).

The Word (which includes the promises of God) will work for you if you’ll be patient (Heb. 10:35, 36). God is not bound by time but operates according to His eternal plan and purpose, and His Word will never return to Him void!