Instant Gratification

The first thing I did this morning was start a pot of coffee and boot up my laptop to write these thoughts.  I tried to connect to the internet, but I don't have the correct access code for the hotel WiFi.  It changes every day and I will need to call the front desk to get it.  Rather than being "bothered" to make a simple phone call, I grabbed my phone, hit a couple buttons, and set up my own personal WiFi through my phone.  Here I am.  I am online.

It causes me to pause, sometimes, when I think about how much instant gratification we have in our world today.  I want it my way and in my time.  Drive through windows give me the food I want, when I want it.  Cars take us where we want, when we want.  (When we couldn't get there as fast as we wanted, we made bigger roads with faster speed limits.)  Cell phones, tablets, computers, and televisions connect us to an internet with a seemingly endless stream of what we want, when we want it.  We are a society filled with instant gratification.

So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking Him, "Lord, has the time come for You to free Israel and restore our kingdom?" He replied, "The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be My witnesses, telling people about Me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." After saying this, He was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see Him. (Acts 1:6-9 NLT)

We're not alone in this.  Even in Jesus' day, his own closest followers and friends wanted instant gratification.  They knew that God worked all things together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purposes (Romans 8:28).  They knew that Jesus was the Messiah who would restore God's Kingdom and bring peace to all nations.  We know that won't happen until he returns.  They wanted it to happen now.  They kept asking him when it was going to happen.  That was the last question they asked Jesus before he ascended into heaven.  Jesus' answer: wait and get to work.  We won't get all the blessings of the Father right away.  Some of them are available to us now, but the whole package won't be available until he comes again.  Peter wrote about this later in his life to encourage Christ-followers not to lose faith.

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 NIV)

How about you?  Do you get sucked in by the desire for instant gratification?  Do you want what you want, when you want it?  Do you try to demand the same thing of our Father through your prayers and expectations?  Does God's response frustrate you enough to leave "home?"