One Valentine’s Day, I attended an event with ladies I knew from a church organization with which I was associated. As the ladies trickled into the cozy Italian bistro to their assigned seats, they began to converse and eagerly look at the menu to order food.

One of the ladies was in the midst of getting ready for the event. In order to prevent everyone’s food from being delayed, she ordered her food while she was on the way to the restaurant.

How many times in life have we been in situations where we are getting ready for our destination while also praying towards a promise? God might have given you a business idea, and as you are getting ready by reading books, saving money, and gathering a network, you are also requesting from God that your business be successful. Some of us are preparing to be married as we pray for a mate. We might be preparing to follow God’s purpose while simultaneously putting in a request for that purpose to be fulfilled.

Habakkuk 2:3 – For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.

It’s easy to get into the mindset that I shouldn’t put in a request to God for something until I’m “ready.” Meaning, until I have all the resources for my business, I shouldn’t ask God to help to start my company. Until I have all the aspects of being a Proverbs 31 woman, I shouldn’t request for God to give me a husband. Until I have every detail of my life together, I shouldn’t ask God for a wife. I believe that as God prepares us for where we are going, He also wants us to pray for where He is taking us! Just as David wasn’t a king when God called him, God ended up qualifying him to be a king through the preparation He did in him. We don’t have to wait until everything is ready for God to see us as ready. As we prepare, we should always be praying for the preparation and the promise at the same time.

I remember when the woman finally walked in, the waiter walked to the table at the exact time she was taking her seat. She actually ended up being served first at the table! I say this to say, when we prepare and pray for what God promised us, He will align it so that everything happens in perfect timing. The woman at the event was not early or late, she was RIGHT on time. This is how God works. He’s on time.