Learning to Wait...

When God says "Wait" what do you do?

When things that feel so BIG hang in the balance and you don't know what to do, or if there is even anything you could do, and God says "wait", what do you do?

Do you wait in fear? Awake at night anxiously replaying all of the worst possible outcomes and mentally flogging yourself for your mistakes and inequities...

Or do you rest in peace knowing He has a plan for this.

That is my struggle and I believe it is the lesson God is teaching me this year. He simply wants me to...

{ WAIT }

and not in fear, but in peace.

~ Psalm 46:10

"He says, 'Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.'" - NIV

"'Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.'" - NASV

"'Stop your fighting--and know that I am God, exalted among the nations, exalted on the earth.'" - HCSB

These three different translations paint a beautiful picture of God's heart for us. No matter what our circumstances are, we can rest in knowing that He is God, He is sovereign and He is worthy of exaltation.

"How does God being sovereign comfort us?"

He is in control. He knows the challenges and trials we will face even before we do and He has a plan for us.

"How does God being worthy of exaltation comfort us?"

It declares His goodness.

In knowing He is good, worthy of exaltation, we can be still, we can stop striving, fighting and trying to do it all in our own strength and simply rest in His goodness.

My experiences growing up shaped the way I have dealt with life’s struggles in the past. I am a doer. I am a fixer. I am a problem solver. I am independent.

I am learning that I don’t have to be completely independent. In fact, it is God’s plan and design that we not be completely independent either of Him or of each other.

I can ask others for help and not be a burden. I always felt like I would become a burden to others if I had to ask them for help, so I would go to the greatest lengths I could to avoid the need to ask.

I don’t have to fix everything immediately. I don’t know about you, but sometimes constraints, like time, create deadlines that seem to loom menacingly over me. Until the problem is solved, I feel anxious, like I have to have the solution now and I can’t rest until I do. The truth is, I can seek counsel, pray and wait for guidance. I don’t have to have the answer today. God knows the need, He knows the circumstances and His timing is perfect.

I don’t have to have all the answers because… He has them!

Never the less, I struggle. I wrestle with the drive to fix everything. The crazy part is… sometimes it doesn’t need my fixing. Sometimes “it” is exactly what I need.

There is always, always, something to be learned. Whether it is a lesson for myself, for my family, or for the people around me that are watching to see what happens, there is something of value to be gained.

Have you ever watched someone overcome some great challenge and been encouraged in the challenge you face?

Have you ever watched someone achieve something you have been wanting to achieve and felt inspired to go for it?

Seeing others come through a storm, beat the odds, achieve their goals, etc. gives us wisdom, encouragement, inspiration, courage, and most powerfully, it gives us hope.

I have seen God’s grace and blessings in the lives of so many people, and I have seen His grace and blessings in my own life. Both experiences give me great hope, encouragement and peace in the present challenge and for the challenges to come.

An incredibly wise woman said this at church on Mother’s Day…

“It doesn’t always go right, but it ends right.”

We are facing some “mountains” right now. Instead of having my typical “freak out”, I am choosing to wait and to trust in Him.

In every trial, in every need, in every fear, in every doubt, I keep finding myself going back to these two verses…

“For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” – Jerimiah 29:11

“If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” – Matthew 7:11

He knows our circumstances.

He knows our needs.

He has plans for us.

Good plans.

He gives us good gifts.

Better gifts than we could give our own children.

We may be facing some giant needs, things we cannot provide or make a way for on our own, but God is so much BIGGER than all of our needs.

So I will { WAIT } in His peace and TRUST in His goodness, His sovereignty, and His perfect timing.

Bless and be blessed, y’all.