God’s timing is perfect. Even before He created the world, He was punctual in the specific moment He chose to begin creating. We cannot know in what ways the world might be different if He had chosen a different moment. However, we can know He chose the perfect moment because He is perfect in all of His ways. (Psalm 18:30) Thus He is perfectly punctual.
Timing is everything, as it is widely said, and God shows His wisdom through punctual acts throughout history. His attention to perfect timing is weaved into the most intricate details of our lives.
The Moment It All Began
Probably, almost every person who has experienced limerence has a story of the “glimmer.” The glimmer is the event by which a limerent person becomes attached to the object of his or her affection. It is an epiphanic moment that sets the course of life for the limerent individual for the foreseeable future.
This moment is punctual too because it has to happen at precisely the right time. Past life events, the surroundings, the current state of heart and mind all factor into the glimmer’s effect. Suddenly, it is as if everything we were missing can be found in that one person. Nothing else matters more to us than being close to him or her.
But if that event happened at any other time or in any other way, limerence likely would not have resulted from it. My limerence started with the ordinary words, “I’ll be out of your way in a minute.” If he had said this to me two years earlier when I was feeling less lonely, I may never have fallen for him.
The Moment Reality Strikes
To counterbalance the heavenly beginning of limerence, the reality of the limerence object’s true feelings strikes. More often than not, how they feel about us is not the way we had hoped. Rejection sinks in and brings us down.
While experiencing this rejection is something we would hardly wish on an enemy, its timing is vitally important. God uses moments like this to wake us from our illusions and remind us of our need for Him.
If we’re completely honest, nothing else would really get our attention. Limerence makes us too tunnel-visioned to see “red flags” or take hints that our feelings may not be reciprocated. But outright rejection stops us in our tracks and makes us take stock of things.
The moment it occurs is an opportunity to ask God what to do next, because chances are we weren’t asking Him before. And if we were, we probably weren’t listening very well. Still, when we call out to Him He will listen to us and speak truth to our hurting hearts. (1 Peter 3:12)
A Promise Made
In the time of the judges, the Israelites strayed repeatedly from the ways in which God called them to live. They conformed to the cultures of the ungodly people around them. Yet in His kindness and mercy He promised to be their God if they returned to Him.
Limerence similarly causes us to stray from a healthy way of life. It blinds us to the destruction until after our hearts are broken multiple times. But God promises to restore us when we turn back to Him as our number one reason for living. He will not refuse anyone who truly wants to be closer to Him. (James 4:8)
The Promise Kept
God was faithful to the Israelite people in bringing them back to their land after being scattered. He saved them from being completely destroyed and increased their population after their enemies killed many of them in battle. At just the right time, He raised up a deliverer who led them to live righteously.
He will be faithful to you as well when you seek Him with all of your heart. (Jeremiah 29:13) Your brokenness is never too extensive for Him to put together the pieces. (Psalm 147:3) The shame and guilt that haunt you are never too deep for Him to redeem you. (Romans 3:23-24) Give Him the pieces of your heart and your negative feelings and watch Him build something beautiful out of them. He promises to be gentle with you and give you peace. (Matthew 11:28-30)
What God’s Punctuality Means to Us
Because God is punctual, He is trustworthy in every circumstance, even limerence. You may not be able to imagine how you could ever be free. Nonetheless He promises you freedom from the addiction “that so easily ensnares,” and this freedom will come at precisely the right time. As Isaiah 25:9 declares, “It will be said on that day, ‘Behold, this is our God; we have waited for Him, that He might save us. This is the Lord; we have waited for Him; let us be glad and rejoice in His salvation.’”
