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Making Up For Lost Time from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo.

Transcript: 

Today I want to talk about making up for lost time. It is is easy to become burdened down and to feel like there is no hope, that it is too late for you, that too much water has passed under the bridge, but with God, all things are possible. God has fast forwarded things before:

After Philip baptized the eunuch in Acts 8:38, he was immediately teleported to Azotus. He did not have to walk. It says that the Spirit of the Lord caught him away: 


Acts 8:38–40 (NKJV) — So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing. But Philip was found at Azotus. And passing through, he preached in all the cities till he came to Caesarea.

When Jesus walked on the water and entered the boat with the disciples, the boat instantly arrived at their destination. They did not have to row there:

John 6:21 (NKJV) — Then they willingly received Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.

Joel 2:25 (NKJV) — “So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, The crawling locust, The consuming locust, And the chewing locust, My great army which I sent among you.

My point is that God can fast forward things for His people, and He can make up for lost time. 

When I was sixteen, I dropped out of high school and took a job working in construction just like my Dad and brothers had all done. By seventeen I was on my own, married with a baby on the way, and bills coming in. 

Because I had wrecked my education, bettering myself became extremely difficult. You need at least a diploma to get any job worthwhile, or to enter college. But now I had no time for that because I had to work digging foundations during the day and then a couple of side jobs in the afternoon just to stay afloat. I painted houses, cut grass, whatever I could find. 

I always thought that it would have been great to attend Bible College because I found the word of God fascinating, but I found that you needed a diploma to even do that. My older brother Randy had gone to adult education at night and spent a year preparing for, and finally obtaining a G.E.D., which is a high school equivalency diploma. I never seemed to have a year to spare, though they continued to tick by. I worked in the day and played music a lot at night. Also I should mention that I hate red tape, drama, and the slow moving tediousness of bureaucracy. When I stand in line, I feel that my life is draining away, so I put off getting my diploma. 

Then when I was nearly 30 years old, I went to church on a Sunday night and before the service started, the pastor’s wife walked over to me, laid her hand on my shoulder and said: “Dion, the Lord wants you to get your G.E.D.” I had never even told them that I had dropped out of school because I was ashamed of it, but the Lord knew, and He told her. 

I could feel the presence of the Holy Spirit confirming the word, so I told her that I would look into it. Monday morning, I took a few hours off from work and went to the Adult Education Center in Conway. The parking lot was almost full of cars, but there was an open parking space right at the door. I parked there and went in and explained that I had been out of school for a long time, but that I would like to get my G.E.D. What made it worse is that I had worked mostly construction type jobs all my life and had long forgotten anything that I learned in school. They said that they would give me a test to see what skills that I needed to work on, get me some books and teach me the subjects that I was weak in, then they would prepare me for the test, and that I should have my G.E.D. within six months to one year. I felt that the Lord wanted me to do this, so I agreed and they told me to return tomorrow to take a pre-test. 

Tuesday morning I went back and there was a parking spot open in front of the door. I went inside and took the pre-test. Now I want to be clear that I prayed A LOT during this time, all the way to the place and all through the test under my breath. As I did, the answers came to the questions one by one. It was grace, it was favor. It was Him. The test seemed easier than I was expecting; I had braced for much worse. I completed all of the tests and wrote an essay for them. They told me to return the following day and they would issue my first books to study. 

I went back Wednesday for my test results and to find out what I needed to work on. My parking spot was open in front of the door. When I went inside, the women that worked there were gathered around a counter discussing my test. They greeted me with a smile and asked: “How long have you been studying for this?” I told them I had decided to start two days ago. They were amazed, told me that I did not need improvement on any subject, and on top of that, they loved the essay that I wrote and said that I was a very good writer, which shocked me. As happy teachers would, they praised me and said that I tested several grades above the recent graduates they had. 

Then one of them said: “It is a shame that you did not come last month as they only hold tests twice a year in this area, and the next one is scheduled for this Saturday, but you have to sign up for it one month in advance.” She said: “Let me call them”. So she called their office, explained the situation, pleaded with them for me, and they asked her to fax over my test scores. She did, they reviewed them and approved me to take the test that coming Saturday in Georgetown SC. She told me: “You got in!” and was so happy to help me. True teachers are amazing. 

That Saturday morning, I drove to the Georgetown location to take the test. There was a parking spot open in front of the door. It was a long grueling 8 hour test with several sections and questions like: “How far is the moon from the earth?” I didn’t have a clue…prayed about it. Got it right! I was one of the first to finish the test that Saturday, and I scored 99% in science. 

When I returned to church the following Sunday, I had completed my G.E.D. from start to finish. In a single week, the Lord had turned my situation around. He had redeemed my lost time. He had expedited my education. After that the Lord had me start Bible college, and now I could do so legitimately. On top of that, someone stepped in and paid my tuition for the first year. See God had plans bigger than mine, and though I had wrecked them at the start, He gave me the divine favor to correct it.

Yes it still took effort. I still had to go and take the tests. I could not lay in bed and watch it magically appear on the wall in a frame, but when I stepped out at His word, then He blessed the results and made me successful. It is us working together with the Holy Spirit, empowered by Him. He will not do it all for you, and God never rewards laziness. I would have died without getting a G.E.D. if I had not been willing to do my part. 

So do you ever feel like you will never make up for those years that you lost? That you have wrecked His plan for you? God’s divine favor can help you make up for lost time and rocket you past the normal if you will work with Him. 

Prayer: Heavenly Father, I pray that you help me to correct the mistakes in my life. Help me move forward and to make up for the lost time. I surrender to You now. Let me align my life with Your plan, in the name of Jesus Christ I pray.