Have you ever had to wait on something? Of course you have. Everyone’s eaten out in a restaurant or sat in a drive-thru waiting on food or drinks. Waiting can be frustrating! It can push you to lose your cool or to act out. For some, waiting isn’t a big deal. For other’s, it’s stressful.
If you’re waiting on important test results or a job opening…waiting can be overwhelming and painful. It can set you back and rob you of your peace. My own experience with waiting has been a wild ride of emotions. No way would I have believed anyone if they’d told me last year that I’d be stuck in the longest season of waiting of my life this year. I might have smirked a laugh or even shook my head in disbelief. Yet, here I am…. 314 days into a waiting that has beaten me silly and refined me into a whole different person.
Waiting can be useful. It’s not all bad. There can be a lot accomplished in a season of waiting. However, waiting can feel so useless too. Our minds are almost programmed to be productive and that just doesn’t seem to go with waiting. Have you tried sitting still doing nothing for long periods of time? It’s maddening. That’s what waiting can feel like to someone wanting to get out there and DO SOMETHING amazing!
Something I’ve learned in my waiting is that God absolutely has a different time frame than me. His timing is not the same as mine. I’m a “let’s do this” kind of person and God is…well, HE’s GOD – He doesn’t answer to moi! HE CAN DO WHATEVER HE WANTS and I have learned to stop pushing and expecting my desires to happen WHEN I WANT and to trust HIM to do even better on His time schedule.
Talk about building up your faith muscles. Yowza!
Also, waiting fine tunes character. Let me tell you, I’ve wanted to go crazy and roll around on the ground out of sheer frustration. Waiting can make you lose your dang mind! Especially if you see others moving forward fast and easy with a blessed life. Waiting can feel like a punch in the nose! Staying close to God through scripture and prayer has shown me some very valuable insight – God is way more concerned with my character than He is with my hubby’s employment. Oh, I believe He understands the importance of jobs & paying bills…but all that’s going to go away someday. There’s no mortgage payment in heaven. My soul needs Jesus, my earthly body needs money to live.
I can wait on God. He has a perfect plan. He will do exactly what I need and do it precisely when I need it most. Trusting Him has been my only choice, believing Him has been my source of survival.
I’m a living testimony that God can and will do abundantly more than we ever deserve.
What are you waiting on right now in your life that’s weighing you down?
How can you stretch your faith muscles and push on in spite of grim possibilities?
Start by thanking God for every. single. thing. in your life. Open your Bible and read His Word every day. Soon you’ll find your heart softening and your worries slipping into a hole that after a while, you’ll kick dirt over and walk away from. Use your time of waiting to build your relationship with Christ and those around you who need you most.
Don’t let waiting make you disillusioned with God’s goodness. He is always working and He is always blessing. Don’t miss it during the wait.
Tags: faith muscle, jobless, relationship, thankful, Trusting God, unemployed, waiting