In Matthew 17:12-13, we read “But I say to you that Elijah already came, and they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they wished. So also the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands.” What the Pharisees had been waiting for arrived. Yet they failed to recognize it, and rejected it, very possibly because it did not come in the form they expected. They did that to John the Baptist, and ultimately to Jesus. This gives us a sobering lesson: the blessings of God, and the things you have been waiting for, will not always appear in ways you expect. In fact, this is a standard operating procedure with God. For example, the very things we need to make us perfect and complete, are brought by God in the form of diverse trials (James 1:2-4). These trials are the opportunities given us so that we will lack nothing (cf. 1 Peter 4:12-13, James 1:2-4, 1 Peter 1:6-7). Yet, they look nothing like opportunities but setbacks and things that sabotage. So how do we know and take advantage of our appointed times and seasons?
The standard way of knowing is not always through a prophetic word, some kind of special revelation, or an instantaneous discernment. These are not always guaranteed. Rather, we are guaranteed to receive the full blessings of our appointed times when we apply God’s Word to every situation and approach everything in our lives according to what God’s word says. This is living by faith and obedience to God in all things and at all times. When we live like this, God Himself takes over and ensures that we never miss out on anything. He promises that when we trust and acknowledge Him in all our ways, believing and applying His word in all we do, He will direct our paths (cf. Proverbs 3:5-6). When God directs your paths, you will end up exactly where you ought be at the proper time. He also promises that His blessings, including His plans and will for us, will pursue and overtake us as we walk in obedience to Him (Deuteronomy 28, Leviticus 26). When God’s blessings are pursuing and overtaking you, you will not miss out on the blessings He has for you in their appointed seasons. Those blessings will purse and overtake you when their time comes.
You may never know that what you are currently dealing with is the one breakthrough that is going to change your life forever. You may never know that the person you just encountered is the one destined to bring you to the very place God has for you. You may never know that the season you have entered is your appointed season of wealth and significance. But as long as you are walking in faith and obedience to God, in all things and at all times, you will not miss out on your appointed times and seasons. So we are to be hospitable to all in obedience to God. It may be an angel sent to you with the very thing you have been waiting for (cf. Hebrews 13:2). Your obedience to be hospitable will be the key that unlocks this blessing and season of your life. You may not know that the prison is the doorway to the throne. But like Joseph, by obeying God to use your gift in service to others and by being diligent in all your work, your name will be brought before the king. And in a single day, you will move from the prison to the throne (Genesis 39-41).
Your faith and obedience to God is your key to taking full advantage of your appointed seasons, even when you didn’t notice when the season arrived.
Kwadwo Omari, PhD
May 2, 2026