Moses went up the mountain to meet with God. We aren’t told how much time had passed, but notice how the people felt about how long he had been gone: to them, Moses “delayed” in coming down. This drove them to feel abandoned by Moses and more importantly, God, and to ask Aaron to make an idol.

But notice God’s perspective of how long it had been. Later, God told Moses that the people had “quickly” turned away from Him (v. 8). Apparently, the Israelites did not take long to violate the commands they swore to uphold. They acted hastily in calling for Aaron to fashion an idol to worship.

Like the Israelites, our perception of time can mislead us, especially when it feels as if God is not paying attention or has abandoned us. Like the Israelites, we can act hastily and turn from God. This is when we need to remember God is never far off, and He always works in His perfect timing, even if it does not feel that way.

• How have you seen the perfection of God’s timing?