Are You Ready?

Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased, and you inherit the land.
--
Exodus 23:30

In Chapter 23, God grants the Israelites various promises, including overthrowing and completely cutting off their enemies. The Lord further states that He will bless their bread and water and take their sicknesses away. With the Lord on their side, the Israelites cannot lose. But in verse 30, the Lord says that He will fulfill His promises by driving out their enemies little by little.

Why?
Why doesn't God just wipe their enemies out like He did the Egyptians as they entered the Red Sea?
What benefit is there to do it little by little?

Exodus 23:29 says "I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate and the beast of the field become too numerous for you." In other words, if God grants our wishes in an instant, this could be harmful for us. Blessings are not true blessings unless they come when we are able to handle them. Even the blessings can become curses if we do not have the wisdom, maturity and honesty to handle them.

The Lord's timing is never too late nor too slow. He is patient and kind, assessing the whole situation, so that when He fulfills His promises in us, we will be able to receive them in peace. We want the quick fix or the instant answers to our prayers or desires. We want the immediate and the miraculous. However, God's ways are not our ways and He desires to give us a future life in His promises. Little by little, complete victory will be ours by having faith and patience day by day.