Moments with God; Kairos Moments

Scripture

Genesis 21:1–5 KJV 1900

And the Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as he had spoken. For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him. And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him.

Life is built upon a series of defining moments, including moment of crisis, failure, sadness, success and joy. Although, it is easy to let emotions dictate our response during a defining moment, how we respond will shape our faith, our personality and determine the direction of our life.

The Old contains the New and the New explains the Old. What that means is that the New Testament can be seen in the Old Testament. In the Old Testament, God makes known predictions, prophecies, and typologies. And, in the revelation of these predictions, prophecies, and typologies, we can see the New Testament Jesus, the Son of God, revealed in the Old Testament. However, without the New Testament to explain the Old Testament, it would remain as mysterious predictions, unfulfilled prophecies, and vague typologies.

As mentioned before, the book of Genesis is a book of beginnings. In the early chapters of the book, God created the earth and everything in it. But, we saw in chapter 3 of Genesis, man’s fall into sin, which began God’s work of reconciling man to Him.. In Genesis, Chapter 21, verses 1-34 we are blessed with a very important beginning, the beginning of the nation of Israel. Earlier in scripture, God had promised Abraham a son and now was fulfilling that promise in providing Isaac.

In Genesis, chapter 21, verses 1-34 we have four divisions that are set forth for us:

Promises of the past Remembered: 1-8

Promises of the past Extended: 9-13

Promises of the past Provided: 14-21

Promises of the past Professed: 22-34

GOD MOMENTS ARE ETERNITY INVADING TIME AND CHANGING A PERSON’S LIFE. IT IS A SUPERNATURAL MOMENT WHEN WE REALIZE GOD IS SPEAKING TO US. GOD MOMENTS COULD BE THE TIME YOU ACCEPT CHRIST, OR YOUR BAPTISM, OR THE TIME YOU REALIZE GOD IS CALLING YOU TO A SPECIFIC VOCATION.

HERE ARE JUST FIVE EXAMPLES OF GOD MOMENTS THAT MANY OF US MAY HAVE SHARED:

1. AMAZING RESCUE: A MOMENT WHEN GOD GUARDED YOU, HEALED YOU, RESCUED YOU, OR MADE A WAY OUT FOR YOU.

2. HOLY ATTRACTION: A MOMENT WHEN GOD LED YOU TOWARD A HEALTHIER PATH, ENABLED YOU TO RESIST A TEMPTATION, OR INSPIRED YOU TO TAKE A HIGH ROAD.

3. UNEARNED BLESSING: A MOMENT WHEN GOD GAVE YOU AN UNEXPECTED BLESSING OR AN UNDESERVED GIFT.

4. REVEALED TRUTH: A MOMENT WHEN GOD SPOKE TO YOU THROUGH THE BIBLE, INNER PEACE, WISE COUNSEL, CONVICTION OF WRONG, OR A GOD-INSPIRED MESSAGE

5. VALUABLE ADVERSITY: A MOMENT IN WHICH GOD SUSTAINED YOU IN A DIFFICULT TIME OR MADE YOU STRONGER THROUGH THE TEST OF ADVERSITY.

They don’t happen often do they? Those kairos moments in life when everything syncs up perfectly. Ah, but when they do it is exquisite! It is arriving at a God moment—the “set time” of maximum opportunity.

I haven’t had many of these.

Oh, I’ve had a few

My own Damascus Road experience. The days I was chosen for jobs I would never have applied for. Those days I left behind all that I loved, all that I wanted, to follow and obey God’s directions for me to follow His plan.

You know the moments that I mean. Those turning points in your life, with days of demarcation. Those defining moments when you knew inside your heart—everything in your life will pivot from this day.

I looked up the word kairos because I wanted to know exactly how it is defined. Here is what I discovered.

KAIROS is a Greek word.

The Greeks have two different words to indicate time. Chronos which is used to indicate chronological or sequential time, and kairos, which are those moments of time we all desire and hope for.

A Kairos moment in time is made up of three elements: It is a moment of maximum opportunity. It is a moment when change is possible. It is an exquisite syncretistic moment when all things “come together” and align.

That last bit is my favorite. I believe it is what the Bible refers to as “the set time,” and what we in the church call, “waiting for God’s best.”

It is for me, the ultimate reason why I wait.

Simply put I want God’s best for my life. I want His plan. The plan that He designed specifically for me before the beginning of time. The plan that holds all of God’s ultimate best for my ultimate good.

This plan of God’s may involve long years of waiting. It may involve walking through many painful events. It might feel like waiting in the dark with little or no understanding. And, it may involve many delays, and detours, with only the promises of God to light my way.

Yet God never promised us that we would understand His plans.

Actually He says just the opposite.

Instead, He asks us to believe that He loves us, and to remember that He has promised us He will never leave us or forsake us—no matter what we must walk through.

I have learned that it is in my walking and my waiting days, I develop those vital muscles called faith, perseverance, and endurance—those strong muscles that will be indispensable for me when I do finally arrive at my Kairos Moment.

Closing

God told Israel that their many years of captivity were but “a small moment” in His eternal counsel (Isaiah 54:7). The apostle Paul knew that the trials of this life, when compared to a vast eternity, are just a “light affliction, which is but for a moment” (2 Corinthians 4:17)

A few moments to think about some defining moments that fill the pages of the Bible.

* Noah deciding to actually build the Ark

* Abraham making the decision to follow God to a new land

* Moses encountering God at the burning bush

* Daniel facing the lion’s den

* Peter hearing the call of Jesus to come follow me

* Mary Magdalene seeing Jesus following the resurrection

* The coming of the Holy Spirit in the Upper Room

* Saul of Tarsus being face to face with Jesus

These are just a few of the various moments that happened in the pages of scripture and maybe our moments are not as dramatic but they impact us in similar ways. We all have moments that help to reshape us into the people Christ desires us to become.

* The moment that you accepted Christ

* The moment you lost a loved one

* The moment a relationship started or ended

* The moment you discovered an illness

* The moment you got a new job or lost one

* The moment you moved to a new area

When everything else tried to break you. You are still standing — a God Moment! When unexpected circumstances tried to break you, yet, you endured — a God Moment! When a pandemic tried to break you, but you are still here despite it all — that's another God Moment.

Matthew 6:34

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” The Good News: Don't worry about the things that haven't happened yet. Live in the moment, and leave your worries for tomorrow.