Thank you for coming over from Encouragement for Today!
In today’s devo I shared a passage from King’s Cross by Timothy Keller. It read:
The Bible says that our real problem is that every one of us is building our identity on something besides Jesus.
Whether it’s to succeed in our chosen field or to have a certain relationship—or even to get up and walk—we’re saying, “If I have that, if I get my deepest wish, then everything will be okay.
So, this is where we begin to find contentment in the wait.
We first understand that our deepest wishes do not always bring the fulfillment we think it might.
Have you ever asked yourself why a successful businessman, or someone who has reached the pinnacle of fame start looking for other ways to find happiness, only to succumb to addiction or a string of unhappy relationships? It’s because the destination isn’t what makes us happy. It’s what is inside of each of us, no matter where we are in life, that defines contentment.
Our identity isn’t about success or failure, or where are while we wait for our deepest wishes to come true. Our identity is founded on the principle that God has a plan. He’s in control, which leads us to the next key.
The wait just might be part of the plan.
Don’t underestimate the miracles to be found in the wait: endurance; trust; character; depth; and so much more.
I’ve been reading a book called Ruthless Trust by Brennan Manning, and it’s challenging me to rethink what it means to truly trust God. It’s not so much about hitting the trust button when your thrust into a situation, but rather a state of being. We learn to ruthlessly trust God day to day.
For the past four years I’ve been in the wait. I thought it would happen in a few months, and then a year, and then two. I went from wrestling with God to trying to make it happen on my own to finally laying it down. I didn’t stop dreaming. I didn’t stop hoping. I knew what God had spoken in my heart. But I had done all I could.
I had to acknowledge that I was in a waiting time.
Last November the doors opened wide, unexpectedly. As I looked back at the original dream, I saw that I was not the same person.
You see, the dream had transitioned from “my dream” to His.
The timing had been removed from my 1 yr/5yr plan to God’s timing.
And I was changed — and so was my dream — because of it. More depth. Tons more trust in God instead of my own actions and efforts.
Which leads us to key #3 in finding contentment in the wait.
If we focus solely on what we don’t have or aren’t accomplishing, we might miss the miracles all around us.
Like, the daily connection with God and people. The times we can simply sit in His presence and acknowledge that we don’t have it all together, but trust His leading. The times of absolute joy though you (and this plan-my-life-kind-of-girl) might have no clue when the wait will end.
That brings me back to Timothy Keller’s observation. Our identity isn’t about the destination, or even our deepest longings, but being His. So our joy becomes consistent — even in the wait.
May I pray with you today?
Father, thank you for this beautiful child of yours who joins me today. Hold her close as only a Heavenly Father can. Tell her that You’ve got this, and that she’s on your heart. Thank you that your plan doesn’t change, and that what we find in the wait is valuable. In your precious name, amen.
I’d love to offer one copy of What Happens When Women Walk in Faith by Lysa TerKeurst by to one person who comments today. Share your thoughts. Where are you in the wait? What is God teaching you? How can you find contentment beginning today?
Today’s devotion hit home. I have been struggling with the “if only”.
Keeping my focus on Christ has not always been the priority. I am right in what I would call the middle of a wait. Time wise it might not be, but it feels like it. God continues to show me His presence in the encouragement of other believers, devotions like today’s and in His word.
“The wait just might be part of the plan.” Those words jumped off the page at me. Thank you for reminding me that God has a plan. I will find contentment in knowing that even in the wait, the plan is still in progress.
Sweet sister, this resonated with me today. Almost two years ago, I was in a failing marriage, on the verge of finishing graduate school, with so many promises on the horizon. And then I discovered I was pregnant with our second. And my husband reacted in anger and fear. So he left. We said it was to go to graduate school, but I did not follow. Nor did I truly find work. And then my pregnancy became difficult. And I ran out of energy. Superwoman hit rock bottom. I was kidnapped back to my hometown, living in my sister’s basement with a two year old and a growing belly. Unemployed. Flash forward. I now have two very busy girls, who are amazing, yet exhausting, blessings. My husband betrayed trust and is now insisting upon a divorce. Still unemployed. Still in my hometown. Finances bottomed out.
And yet, God is teaching me such beautiful lessons. He has stripped me of so much of what I thought was essential to survive. I am learning, painfully, to trust in God and to believe him when he says he is good, that he has a plan, that he will provide. In so many ways, both big and small, God is sustaining my girls and I. I still weep for my husband, as the divorce process moves forward, and often I grieve in the middle of the night, in those quiet moments after one of the girls has awoken from a nightmare or a wet bed. I too counted the time, praying, hoping, pleading that it would all be over in one year, two years. . . All I know is that God is faithful and that I have nothing, but for the cross. I am learning that pain does not preclude joy, and that God’s goodness shines through the darkness. I am experiencing such a deep measure of love, grace, and peace. I weep as I read the Bible, overcome by God’s grace and mercy. I cringe as God’s refining fires bring to the surface such ugly impurities. And then I thank God enough for sending me through these fires. And I pray that I reflect his glory. And I hold out a broken heart and needs beyond description in trust that God is already providing in ways I cannot even imagine.
Thank you for your devotional today. Thank you for reminding me to bury the “if only” desires in my heart in order to cling to my “one and only.”
One thing I have found is that “the wait” is difficult enough for oneself, but when you are watching and living it through your children it is so much harder to allow God to continue His plan in His time. Until God works His miraculous healing hand on the life of my precious daughter, we continue to “wait” and accept all that He is teachinig us through this difficult time. As I watch her walk with Him grow on the days she often struggles the most, I am reminded that HE IS IN CONTROL!
This was a great reminder that god is still at work…even in out time of waiting. We really have been blessed to understand gods wait time!! We have recently adopted two children…and if god wouldn’t have allowed us to WAIT during this process we may not have received his full blessings. During our wait time, God shaped our hearts and allowed us to grow in our faith so we would be ready to receive HIS plan. Therefore, I’ve learned to appreciate Gods wait time and find myself praying through it rather than worrying if God is really listening. Gods timing is perfect and if that means we have to wait…then to God be the glory!!! Have a great Monday!!
I’ve been wanting to write a book for a few years. The Lord has caused it to come about now. It’s still a slow process but it’s a lot to learn for the story line. It’s a very stretching experience for me.
In another area I’m still waiting for 54years for a best friend to marry. Seems like I’d give up by now but it’s written on my heart to hope. I’m learning to be who I need to be for him as well as he for me.
I’m trying also to learn that without the Lord I have nothing. You said earlier…He is more than Enough.
Thank you. This really spoke to my heart today.
Waiting is hard. Feb. 18 my husband’s biopsy came back melanoma.
We’ve been handed from doctor to doctor to doctor. We’re currently in waiting mode for the next consultation with an oncology specialist which is scheduled for the end of March.
We don’t have a surgery date, we don’t know if the cancer is in my husband’s lymph nodes.
Older relatives insist the procedure should have been done yesterday and not a month or two from now; they make us scared and upset.
A year ago another dermatologist checked the same spot and said it was nothing. The doctor didn’t biopsy it. This fact makes it more difficult to wait patiently.
All we can do is wait and try to wait well, trusting God and His plan. It isn’t easy.
Thank you for today’s timely post.
Thank you so much – this was such a message for me today. I am a mum and always feel I have to ‘fix’ it for my family. Like Lori Ann I am ‘waiting’ for my child. He is 19 and struggling as a apprentice in his chosen career. He is a Christian and is challenged in work for his faith. Daily we both pray that it will be a good day for him. When it isn’t a good day I feel that God hasn’t answered our prayers but through your message today I can see that God is answering in strengthening him daily. I need to trust more that God is in control.
I know I am in a time of waiting and I swing back and forth between waiting and trying to make something happen on my own. It’s hard for me to keep hoping without clear cut goals and dreams for my future. Right now I don not have any real hope that my circumstances will ever change. I am happy but do wish for a husband but feel that because I am divorced that marriage will not likely ever happen again. I want to trust God completely that in this wait I am learning to know Him as everything. That He is truly all I need. I guess I struggle most because how can God be all I need when He can’t physically hold me. I want God to be all I need.
Thank you! My husband and I have found that we cannot have children together – a bitter pill to swallow as we both love children and dreamed to have a big family – I actually chose teaching as a second career just to focus on children to get to know about their needs and how to be/work with and love them on a day in – day out basis.
Now my husband and I are trying to adopt. We have no idea how long the wait will be…we are both in our late forties.. and we still have the hope to support and serve life as parents… Why would God make us wait to do such a “good” thing?
We know that in the wait God is preparing us… He is working on both of our hearts and forming us as a “team”. We are confident that we will look back and see what God has done. Even though a wait means that we will be even older parents than we would be if we were able to receive a child right now, we know that God will provide the energy, etc. etc. when He finally blesses us with our family.
We also know that even though our marriage cannot be fruitful through our bodies (bringing a child of our own into the world) or through adoption right now, (we have no idea how long this wait to adopt will be) we can be fruitful in the ways that we invest in the lives of the family, friends, Church and community around us. There are so many needs. And God never fails to teach us new things through every experience of giving or doing for another soul…. I guess we are in a school of parenthood right now. So there is still joy in the waiting. God’s curriculum is always the best and richest!
We have trouble accepting that the “waiting” is part of the plan given to us. We live in a world of instant that we no longer want to wait. Currently my family is struggling financial however, every month the Lord provides and all of the bills get paid and food is placed on our table. In the last couple of months I have learned that I just have to put it in his hands and he will provide for us, just like he promised.
I wanted to say thank you to Michelle for sharing her story in her comment. My marriage is in serious trouble & so is my husband. His sin has affected our whole family. I would ask anyone who reads this to please pray for me, my husband & two young children. Also, Michelle blessings on you for sharing your story-it has helped me today. I pray you will find all you need in our great & mighty God!
~Blessings~
Like so many other ladies who posted, we are waiting too. I started a long post with all the details of our wait, but then I remembered Suzie’s wise words today. Focus on God. Don’t focus on the wait. So, I am looking for the miracle in today’s wait – even if it was just the blessing to realize my 7 year old wasn’t dawdling on the walk to school this morning, but rather was marveling at a entire flock of birds together in a single tree. God, thank you for giving us the miracle of your creation! Give me the eyes and heart to be looking for your miracles all around me as we wait … And wait… And wait!
I just want to thank you for the devotion of your though the Proverbs 31 ministries. It was used by God this morning that I too have anchored in the “if onlys”. I need to get back to remembering all that God has blessed me and my family with.
Thank you for the devotional and the beautiful prayer at the end.
I appreciate the book about trust that you made mention of because that is where I need to start to stop the “if only”. My trust has been shattered when I lost my 48 year old husband and then was thrown into the flashbacks from horrible memories of abuse by both my parents. This God that I wanted to be my “everything” showed me what He would allow in my life and I no longer wanted to trust in that kind of God. I am having to redefine who God truly is and come to accept Him on His terms, not mine, that will require more trust then I have right now. So your thoughts and insights were so helpful and I am going to get the book to help me with the trust. I have seen the goodness of God and He has allowed me so many graces, but once the trust is shattered those “things” seem to not really matter in the light of what He allows. It is a journey that I don’t intent to abandon but the road is long and scary right now to place in trust back in His hands.
I have discovered the wait is where we grow. It’s been one of the hardest things to go through but I am not the same person I was a year ago. I am learning to trust Him and His timing and discovering true joy in the process. Jer. 29:11 has become my verse for this season. Thank you for reminding me to get out of “If only” town!
I have being waiting for what seems like a lifetime for someone to trust and have my back. I have been a single mum for 22 years, my youngest was in the womb when the divorce was final. My daddy went to be with Jesus 3 years later. He had my back, but I realized within the past week that I am looking here on earth for someone when I no longer need to look here that the Lord Jesus Christ has always had my back and I just didn’t realize it. I’ve been waiting for so long for something I had all the whole time. I no longer need to live being afraid of this or that, since I have the most powerful friend who always has my back with me all the time. Thank you!
Hey friends, I just wanted you to know that the giveaway today is a copy of my friend, Lysa TerKeurst’s book , What Happens When Women Walk In Faith. Suzie
Your devotion really hit home with me today. God used it to speak to my heart. I’ve been too focused on the ‘if only’ or ‘what if’ that I’ve been so discontented and even depressed. I’m challenged now to put my focus on Him, not on the ‘what if’s.
Thank you so much for this today. This has really hit home for me and has given me much to consider today. Thank you for sharing!
The prayer you wrote wrapped it’s arms around my shoulders and gave me a big hug today as I let the tears flow. Thank-you Suzie. All the comments posted remind me I am not alone in ‘the wait’. I find strength in your testimonies. Thank you, ladies. To God be the Glory.
I thank God for sending this message through you today. I have been struggling with this issue for a long time in regards to my career path. I have been so discontent and unstettled that it has often made me angry. I’ve been so focused on what I don’t have that I’ve failed to recognize all the wonderful blessings in my life. I’ve been recently praying that God would speak to me and deal with my heart on this issue and I know he is speaking to me today through your words. Thank you for your honesty and your obedience to God.
Suzanne: Thank you so much for your very timely devotional. God has placed me in a waiting period right now. Like you I am a planner, need to know the next step, girl and am having to learning to trust His leading and His perfect plan to move forward. It is a daily struggle for me, but I am also reminded that the waiting is part of God’s plan. Thanks for another reminder that God is in control and is fully trustworthy.
Mary
Your words were among others I read this morning emphasizing the word WAIT. Our family has been in a loooong season of wait as my husband has been unemployed for over a year. However, HE has given us what we need along the way and I certainly am not the person I was a year ago. I’m continuing to learn to trust HIM in the everyday knowing HIS plan is and always will be the perfect ONE even when I can’t see it or understand it. HIS sustaining power, strength, and provision have overwhelmed me at times. HE knows what HE is doing and although it has been hard, I’m thankful for this season of waiting and who I am becoming because of it : )
“If we focus solely on what we don’t have or aren’t accomplishing, we might miss the miracles all around us.”
This is just what I needed to hear today to get me back on track. God Bless you Suzie for the work you are doing in sending out these messages when God speaks to your heart.
As so many others, your words and other words you shared had an impact on me today. I was diagnosed with kidney cancer almost a year ago and am living in the wait. I, too, struggle with the “if onlies”. Praying that this insight will help me to grow in my trust of God’s plans. Thank you for your words today!
Blessings,
Nancy
Waiting…do it all the time!! God is Good..All the Time..and All the Time… God is Good!!! Thanks for your devotion, Suzie, and your special heart from God. Praising God for the waiting time, as it does build endurance and strength. Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord..one of my favorite worship songs! God Bless!
Thank you Suzy for sharing God’s message to us today. It really hit home! May you be showered with His blessings for your faithfulness!
God truly sends us exactly what we need when we need it! My husband has not worked since 2 days before Christmas. While I pray faithfully for God to answer my prayers , He does not seem to hear me. It is such a hard thing to be faithful when it feels like God is not listening! Maybe now it will be easier?!
I love God’s timing!!!
This morning I was thinking that we are all waiting for our “just-s” If I just had more money. If I just had more time. If I could just find the perfect job. If I could just lose the weight. If I just knew for sure.
We can become so focused on what we “just” don’t have, that we can lose sight of the amazing goodness that God provides constantly!
I’m going to start making the effort to get rid of all my just-s and the if onlies. I’m starting right now!
In 2006, I was on my 9 year plan to raise my children and then start my life as a divorced person. God changed those plans and my divorce was in 2006. I have been in a holding pattern since that time, and I too am a different person in God. I have learned to wait well, and rely on the opportunities that God gives to me daily. Sometimes the wait is extreamly long and I begin to panic. I then remember that when I trust God takes care of me. I am getting excited about my changes in my relationship with God and I look forward to my days of being in that relationship. It has been a struggle raising two children as a single parent but the rewards have been so gratifying. My son is graduating from High school and he has become a wonderful young man to know. My daughter is a Freshman. I try to show them that when we trust only in God and not man we will make it through anything! Thank you so much for these words today! I know they are true.
Carolyn
Suzie and blog friends:
Please pray for me. I have been waiting and waiting and waiting for God. I have grown weary in the waiting. I have lost faith and hope and am very discourage. I skipped church last night and haven’t read my Bible all weekend. I can’t take reading promises in the Bible that do not hold true. I don’t want to go to church. I am tired of praying prayers that go unanswered. I appreciate any words of advice or encouragement. I just can’t do this any more.
Oh. My. Goodness. I don’t think there was anything more perfect for me to read this morning. We were just blessed with a farm (have been waiting for years to move to one) and now that we’re here, I am so completely obsessed with NOT waiting anymore. I have a list of things to get done, a timing in which I want it to happen, etc. But I KNOW that’s not the right way to accomplish anything, and the harder I go against that, the worse things are! I sat down the other night and God so clearly spoke to me “You have this farm now, if you don’t put ME at the center of it, this is going to be really really hard for you.” How is it that we forget about His timing? How is it that we forget about His plans…and that sometimes we have to continue to wait…because, like you said that IS the plan? Thanks for much for your words today. 🙂
Thank you for your message today. In this world of instantaneous everything, waiting has become so much more difficult for us all. I’m 57 years old and still waiting to figure out what God’s plan is for me. But I feel like he is speaking to me a little more each day and that is comforting. And, who knows, maybe I’ll be 80 years old before I know for sure what his plan is or was, but that’s going to be okay. I’m learning that God is enough. That I do find joy in just being here today and living and giving and trying to learn all that I can about God’s word. Thank you so much for all that you and the other women at Proverbs 31 Ministries do for us. Have a blessed day!
I’ve been in waiting for over a year now. God told me to wait although it was hard. I see how waiting was whats best for my family. Now the wait is getting easier to bare and my relationship with God has deepen. Thank you for the encouraging words today, it really helps me to stay focused on God and not on my wait or what ifs.
Wow, you hit that nail on the head for me today. My husband lost his job of 9 years about 1-1/2 years ago. You would never say that it has been easy since then, but when I actually sit and look back, I realize — I have a warm home, I have a great job, I have health care, all our needs are provided for and we want for nothing EXCEPT for what WE determine is what we need. My husband has struggled since he is not doing the job he feels he is qualified for and he certainly isn’t earning near what he did before. I pray for God’s guidance to have the words to say to my husband. Occasionally he will admit “maybe I’m right where God wants me to be”. I know that God will bring him to the place he is meant to be. We have struggled and doubted during our WAIT but we are determined to give God the Glory and allow him to do what he has planned. Thank you for your message today.
Wendy, Chambersburg, PA
Your devotion was right on time for me today…..I have been living in If Only for a few years now. Our family struggles with my husband’s anger issues and PTSD. I am starting to realize I must move on with what GOD IS DOING, and stop focusing on how Satan is continually attacking my husband. Life is passing and I am missing the reality of all the blessings we have, thinking about the “if onlys”, which may not make life any more blessed than it already is.
Thank you for your devotion today….it was answer to prayer. I have been struggling with this very topic for some time now and questioning whether I truly trust HIM like I think I do. I am going to look for the book Ruthless Trust by Brennan Manning that you are currently reading. Thanks!
It is so hard to wait for God’s timely, as you well know. I know that I am supposed to have faith. I know that all will work according to God’s plans if I let it. But…it’s the actually living out that faith with patience that we all struggle with. Thank you for your encouraging words to add another voice to the truth I need to hear.
I have been struggling with health issues, and many of life’s stresses, wishing that answers would just magically appear so I could be well. I can see the if onlys in my thoughts. Thanks so much for writing as God is certainly speaking to my heart today.
Oh Suzie, this post is one of many signs my husband and I have been receiving lately! My husband has been waiting for a promotion for years at his current job. We have been waiting for better hours, a consistent schedule, an increase of income, a position with more creative freedom as well as responsibilities, the opportunity to move closer to town and build a new home – the list goes on! My husband recently received a job offer which includes ALL OF THE ABOVE! However, it requires us to move…to his hometown – a place we never thought we’d go back to. We are being led to make this move, but we keep letting negative thoughts creep in and scare us. We thought we’d always remain in our current area and have a wonderful church family we’d be extremely sad to leave behind. So we’ve waited, God has opened doors, and now our faith is being tested since they’re not quite the doors we thought would open. But the again, I’ve always heard God laughs at our plans! Thank you so much for sharing this post.
What wonderful insights into the “wait” time. I often question….what is it I am suppose to be learning now? I hadn’t really thought of how much the lessons in the waiting would change me to better accept the blessings of when the “wait” was over or when the dream I thought I should have started living finally begins. It is a time for appreciation and now some anticipation of how the growth me will make beginning whatever dream I begin more sweeter!
I will tell you what I did in the “wait.” In August 2005, my husband and I lost our home in Hurricane Katrina. In September 2005, we were pregnant with our long prayed for child. In January 2006, I miscarried our precious baby and we were both completely devastated. What were we going to do? We were invited to a new church by a friend and found what we now call our church home. It was so amazing what we felt here that we had never before felt. We ached for the lost of our baby and so wanted to conceive again, but we were in the “wait.” While in the “wait” God showed me that while we might not be able to conceive our own child in that moment, I could still love and experience the love of a child by volunteering in the church’s children’s ministry. In 2008, I conceived and gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. Now, years later I still volunteer in the children’s ministry and still consider it such a blessing that God has given me the strengths and the talents to continue to do so.
This is a big reinforcement for what God has been telling me. I need to let go and literally, let God. I’m trying to work through how to do this nought because by repetitiveness, I have ingrained in myself the pattern of worry and self- planning. I pray for God’s leading but then don’t wait for Him to lead. This clearly is my time for growth. Thank you for sharing!
I have been struggling with this a lot lately. Two years ago a 5 year relationship ended and while I see that he is not the man that is supposed to be in my life I continue to try to push the issue and then when things there fall through I start to say, “if only” I could find a good boyfriend… I sit in church and look around and leave sad and say “if only” I had someone to share these experiences with. I have tried and tried to be thankful for the good things I do have in my life but I always revert back to the standings of my love life. This has opened my eyes, showing my that I need to be more devoted to God, then the search for “the one”
I have never visited your site before, but I get the Proverbs 31 devotions in my email. It’s amazing how God puts something in my path that I needed to read and ponder today. Yesterday I had a huge If Only moment and prayed about it and then began to plan out how God could do things my way. I so thank you for this message today. I realize right at this very moment that God is saying to wait and be still and be content and rejoice in it all.
WE have been looking for a place closer to our families, friends, and work so we could save money on gas, use our time wisely. Three times we have found a place and yet God has said no. It has been hard. We drive 50 miles a day if we don’t have extra activities and we are wondering where God is leading. So we are still waiting after a year.
Thank you SO much for listening to God and writing this post. If you hoped to only speak to one person today, God spoke to my heart through this post. You see, we are saving to adopt. KNOW that God has put this on our hearts. He has given us a heart for the fatherless, and is showing us HIS heart for them. The call came TWO years ago. So much like you, I’ve let myself slip to that place of “if only.” I just knew when God called us in October 2009, that He was going to give us the money we needed to follow Him in this. And I didn’t think it would be YEARS later. Well, here we are, years later, still waiting. And it is not easy. I know in my heart that God knows who and where our next child will come from. He knows exactly when he or she will be born. He knows what we need to go through to get to them, and what they need to go through to be ready for our family. HOWEVER, the enemy HATES adoption, he hates us, he wants to “kill, steal, and destroy” and it is easy in the wait to start listening to those lies (like I need to work on it on my own to make it happen). I praise God for speaking this truth to me today through you. Thank you so much. May I always find Him and rest in HIM alone during the doing AND the waiting.
I am very sad today- I try to be content with my circumstances and I very thankful for what we do have in our life. I am just broken over the fact that some people at our church are so negative and critical toward me and of me. I am the preacher’s wife and today I just don’t think I can go further in my walk-at times there- I am human and I make mistakes, but I have never ever intentially tried to offend anyone. However, the last two weeks have been hard there and there is no one at church I can trust or confide in. I have no friends there. They criticize us on every little thing and are unforgiving. Yesterday my husband apologized from the pulpit on behalf of both of us for the second time. The people who should have been there were not. They have hurt me and I need to forgive but they will not apologize they do not care they have intentionally hurt us. The things they have done are far more insulting and highly offensive- intentional. It hurts. I wish we could go but God has not released us to go. I need prayer on how to be content in the midst of the storm. I long to be at a church that loves us and embraces us and has mercy on us and shows love and grace and forgiving hearts. I long for people not to get so easily offended and be less sensitive over stupid petty things and wish they would take time to get to know us. If they did they would know we love and care and our hearts long to be close to them. Right now I just feel like I am in a fish bowl and that I can nothing right. I have tried and nothing pleases them. Just please pray for me. My heart hurts. Thanks.
Well, I’m really in the wait. I broke my leg last week at my daughter’s out-of-town softball tournament. Had surgery last Tuesday and I now have a big old plaster cast on my leg. It has most certainly slowed me down physically. One thing that God has shown me already is how many precious friends I have. Friends that call, come over, bring food, give rides to my daughter, run errands. And He has shown me what a precious husband and daughter I have. They take care of me, bring things to me, sit with me, help me get from here to there. I am truly blessed. While this break is aggravating, it has already been used to show me how blessed I am.
This is for DOT who is ready to give up: Don’t you dare stop waiting! The storm is always strongest right before the calm. If you doubt Him, tell Him you do…He can definitely handle that. Tell someone in your church family how you feel. Go to your pastor & talk to him/her. Ask that a mentor be assigned to you. My church has them, & they are wonderful in moments when everything seems to be crashing down around you. Remember that Jesus was tempted in all the same ways that we are. He was tempted to be discouraged; think of Gethsemane! Talk to Jesus about how you feel. Ask Him to give you a hug that will just let you know He’s really there. Trust me, I’ve actually done that & He was definitely there. I am a Biblical Life Coach & it breaks my heart when I learn of people who are being beaten down by life. My whole ministry is to help people through such times. You can get through the waiting period, & I ask our Father right now to strengthen you & give you courage in place of the DIScourage-ment you are going through.
My husband and I are dealing with the very same thing. the loss of a dream that feels so important. and we could be happy with a tad bit more money, or a slightly bigger house, or 1 more hour in each day . .. trying to learn to praise in all circumstances!
I feel like I’m waiting to see how God is going to fit a dream I’ve had for a long time into the life He has called us to right now. Sometimes I feel like He has called my husband to something totally opposite to the dreams He has put in my heart, so I’m waiting to see how He brings us both individually and as a couple to fulfill what He has planned for us.
Thank you so much for your post today. While I can find an “aha” moment in most every devotion, this is not only pertinent but timely. As we have relocated, we currently pay two mortgages. We have been saying for too long, “as soon as the house sells, we will tithe. As soon as the house sells, we’ll think about that mission trip. As soon as the house sells…” It has been months on the market and while we praise God that we are blessed in so many ways, I am reminded by your post to not just thank God in prayer but to be intentional and active in our praise as well.
It’s fun and exciting to have something to look forward to that we’ve planned, such as attending a concert or dinner. However, as for our life plans, we tend to make those with the expectation that God will “show up” and everything WE planned will fall into place. And when things don’t turn out like that, we become disillusioned and disappointed. But you know what, having just lived through something like that, I’ve realized, no matter what, God’s plans for our lives may take a different direction than what we’d planned, but we WILL be blessed. Blessed in unexpected ways. Ways that will lead to spiritual and personal growth, and bring us closer to God. So we need to recognize that, and that will lead to contentment and gratitude. Really! It works. 🙂
All I can say is wow…thank you for sharing this. I don’t think I can express my gratitude in having read this. It is exactly what I needed and I thank God for leading me to it.
Laura Gonzales;
Thank you. Please keep praying for me.
Waiting for God to deliver me from agonizing pain has been unbelievably hard these last 4 years. Now I am waiting for an answer about side effects from a new drug I tried for the pain & that is really hard too. I can’t describe the pain…but it is beyond anything I have know and I am not a young woman. But I can tell you I would have never believed that I could endure it, and yet, I have because Jesus has been there all the way. When I was a 20/30 something I would sometimes ask God why. Now I know the answer always is because it is for His glory and my good. When I was a 40/50 something I would sometimes ask if. Now I know that God is good and God is good all the time, even when life hurts and He will always do good to me. Now I simply ask when. Will it be sooner, later or in eternity? I know He is with me as we wait together and there is great comfort in that. I know He has caused my family and friends to grow since my disabling pain in ways I would have not allowed because I was simple so capable I would have done it for them. My daughter and her husband have been waiting to adopt for 2 years. When I ask her how she’d like my friends and I to pray when we met for a mthly prayer time she says, “Pray that I can wait well.”
Hi, have you ever read something and felt like it was written to you (from God).? Sounds like each one of us is in the process/plan God has for us”WAITING” while He makes our characters like HIS.
Blessings and praying for each one of you….
Cheryl
This is something God has been speaking to me about lately. I recently began a relationship with a wonderful, godly man. I still need to remember however that God is my source. His love will fulfill me like no other. Regardless of what is or is not happening in life I would really love to be in a place where I truly find my sufficiency in Jesus.
Thanks for your awesome devotionals!
This devotion about waiting has hit home. I have been going to school part time while raising four children and having a husband. I had been asking the ladies in my bible study to pray that I would be able to focus more on homework. However, this didn’t seem to help. Finally I deceided to change my prayer to ask for God’s help and guidance concerning my children. Two days later it hit me! It was time to take time off of school and spend all the time I have spent stressing about school on my children and finding ways to bring God into our home more. I have been a christian for many years but got off course for a long time. My current husband is a new christian so the fact that we can worship God together as husband and wife is new to both of us. Following the advice of my mother, she told me to sit still and WAIT to see what God wanted me to do. This is very hard for me as I feel like I always need to be busy. This time I’m going to listen to both my mom and God as I’m waiting to see what and or where he wants me to be and do.
I am so glad that I took the time to read this post. I am currently struggling with an eating disorder. Let me tell you, this issue is all about the “if only” that you describe. I am not trusting in the Lord with all of my heart, soul, and mind. I am still struggling with my eating disorder and everyday there is a new challenge but I feel the healing in my soul and I try to look forward instead of backward in a land of regret and punishment. The Lord is my strength and I am his child. I must find my identity in Him and Him alone.
My husband of 33 years died 11 months ago . My job of 10 years was lost 12 days ago. So God has my attention. I’am waiting for direction , waiting for eternity, waiting for a job, and a purpose for my liife. In the meantime, God is showing me He is in control, He is my source and He will be my husband . If I look at my problems i’am overwhelmed but as I look to God he is helping me to trust and follow him.
This devotion was perfect for me as well today! I have never taken the time to read comments ( all of them ) before. My heart is touched by each and everyone of you! Our God is a Great God and it wows me to think of the work He is doing in all of our lives. My prayers are with each and every one of you.
For Dawn, please hold on and know that God has a purpose for you! What a trial you are facing! If you have time, take a look at the Psalm study that Wendy Pope is doing through Proverbs 31. Todays video message has to do with facing trials and whether we should face or flee. God Bless!
Ladies,
What a blessing to hear the thoughts, prayers, concerns at the “waiting.” I’ve been in the “wait” game for some time, but God has a way of giving me the “here ya go” to the prayers I’m waiting on, that all ai can do is wait again. THe ups and downs, or the valleys and the mountians…the waiting is in both places, both emotions. I find my hardest and where He shows me His grace is in HOW I wait. My positive additude, my profession of faith, the helping of others. I pray for others so my prayers can also be answered. I humbel myslef in know that so many of you have taken the time to write and share the good, bad and the ugly for high fives and support…it’s what it’s all about, speaking life into the kingdom people…those who are you that for the smallest of time, spoke volumes into my life, just by sharing on the “if only.” If only I could be in the same room and hug you all!!
Blessings and strength in Him!!
I so needed this today. Thank you!
Thank you for your blog….and all the encouragement that comes from all
these different comments…it helps more than you know 🙂
I have a day off work and have been able to raed almost all the comments thoroughly. Thank you for sharing the original devotion Suzi and to all who commented. I have written LRF, Michelle, Dot and Dawn down to pray for. I learned a lot from everyone’s comments. May we all trust Him more.
Reading through these today. Wow, Michelle, your faith and ruthless trust in God is powerful. I see Jesus in you, sis. I pray that God continues to give you those miraculous moments in the midst of the wait.
Johnette, as the gramma to a beautiful adopted grandson, I hear your heart in this. Waiting for a child is painful, and when you hold that little one in your arms for the first time, it’s a gift.
EGrace, What a hard place to be in. I pray that the doctor’s hear you and bring your husband in quickly. There are times that we wait because it is God, and times we wait because people stand in the way. I would urge you to get your primary doctor to help you open the doors more quickly.
For many of you I am responding privately. I read each one of these and am praying. While I don’t have all the answers, I do know where to go for those answers. Dot, my heart is heavy with you today, sis. I am praying that you don’t give up. That you don’t walk away, even in your discouragement, from God or what He has for you. There are those times that it’s hard to wait. I’ve been in them — cancer, financial, when a child was hurt by a drunk driver — and my words come from being in the ‘after’ part of those stories. God sees you. He loves you. He hasn’t gone anywhere. Hang tight. Hold closely. There is an “after” for you, too.
This was a great devo/post! I waited in an abusive marriage for almost 20 years before God told me, “Enough,daughter.” Now I am in waiting for over a year for my divorce to be finalized. God has taught me through it all that He knows the next step and when the future looks like a dark abyss, He is there and He will lead me. All I have to do is keep my eyes on Him and put one foot in front of the other.
God bless the rest of my sisters who are waiting on the Lord!
Robin is our winner of the book, What Happens When Women Walk in Faith. I have sent Robin a message requesting her mailing address. Thank you ladies for these comments. For the past hour I have been responding to many of you, and praying for others. I love how honest you are.
I, too, am in a period of waiting. Waiting to see how God works in my life in a relationship with a wonderful man. Louis is slow to make decisions, deliberate in his planning, but once he decides it’s amazing. I so admire this man of God, that I have the blessing of spending time with! Yes, I would love things to move right along, yet I recognize the value in waiting for God’s timing.
And if I can wait well; waiting with God as my focus, not any human. I pray that as I wait I can bring myself closer to my Lord and become the Christian and witness He would have me to be.
And honestly, it would REALLY be nice to have some sign that this IS what God wants me to do, that this is where he wants Louis and I to be. Will you pray with me for that sign? thanks…
Thanks so much Suzie, I am always blessed by your teaching.
: )
OOOHHHH how this devotion is in PERFECT timing… With all the things I have been going thru right now, I have been dealing with If onlys with my children, and building my identity with them instead of Jesus. I had a wise counsel tell me, just this.. Me not realizing it… Now, I’m trying to have my first fruit my quiet times with Jesus. And sitting and just waiting on Him. His leading. And when I think on the negative or the bad choices my children are making (the things I see) I have to trust and depend on Jesus.. I know, sometimes it gets hard, But Jesus is what brings Joy, knowing that the end result is His…
I have seen this theme of “wait” come up to me a lot lately…. I am waiting and I have changed. And I do want to trust God, but I need his help in my daily wait. I go from calm and peace and laying it all down to him then something just seems to set me off and I freak out all over again. I really help my path brings me to a place of true trust in him and that I can find a peaceful balance in my “wait” instead of riding what feels like a jerky roller coaster up and down all the time. thanks for the prayer you included!
Waiting is just plain hard, isn’t it? But what if it’s part of the journey? A very important part where we trust God for His best plan, and understand that Jesus waited often for us, waited patiently for his disciples to catch on, to grow us up, to love us while He waits for us to accept that love and run with it. So, what if waiting teaches me, proves me to be ready when the right door does open? That so changes the waiting time from “limbo” to trust and growing into the plan. <3
Howdy! I could have sworn I’ve visited this website before but
after browsing through a few of the articles I realized it’s
new to me. Anyways, I’m definitely pleased I discovered it and
I’ll be book-marking it and checking back frequently!