Waiting is often very difficult for many people. Whether it’s waiting on a pastor position, right now waiting for my house to sell, for a publisher to pick up one of my book projects; waiting is something I’m very personally acquainted with. It’s easy in seasons of waiting to wonder, “God, you gave me this passion for this” or “God, You led me down this path” and we forget that all of that isn’t dependent on us. Instead, it’s all about God’s perfect timing.
Some people struggle mightily with this. They wonder, “When will my [marriage, relationship, job, career, etc.] be better than it is right now?” For many of us, we have a view of the future as a bed of roses. We want the good life without doing the hard work to get there. Waiting isn’t an end to itself. The Lord often makes us wait to refine our character and prepare us for what He has for us next; not what we want of Him.
My Own Struggle with Waiting
In this season of life, I’m presently waiting on my house to sell. The first week was the hardest. After all, multiple people told me you should have an offer on your house within three days with many people coming and going told me. The Lord has other plans and so far, only one person has come to see my house. Granted it only takes one person, but here my wife and I sit at the start of week three with no offer on the house. Waiting is hard because it challenges our self-sovereignty. Waiting forces us to admit that we are not sovereign; there is only One sovereign, and we are not Him.
Waiting Challenges Our Self-Sufficiency
Waiting also challenges us in the area of our self-sufficiency. We think, “I made a plan and now it needs to come to pass”. What we forget is that while God may have led us to the point where we are at now in our lives, it’s still in His timing for it to come to pass.
It may seem like this is all too easy to say for me but how often I forget it. I have multiple close friends right now whose marriages are in big trouble. One of them I’m in regular communication with on an almost daily basis right now. And I told this friend, I’m really struggling right now about a week and a half ago with feeling completely worthless. I’ll never forget what he said, “Dave I look at your life right now and you have so much a loving, caring, godly wife, and more. While I understand how you feel, you need to consider what you have.” I thanked this friend for this perspective and assured him it helped. Like many, I need to be reminded to think on what is pure, noble and good from the Lord (Phil 4:8); not what I don’t have.
As I’ve reflected on that text message conversation with my good friend, I recognized that often my perspective goes quickly downhill. My gaze goes often off Jesus, onto myself, and then from there, things spiral very quickly. Depression quickly kicks in and my anxiety soars. Then, unbelief rages and my affections go cold. It feels like the whole world at those times is coming against me. Yet in the midst of the storms of life, Jesus is passionately pursuing you and me. He will not let me or you go. He will see you and me through all the storms life has to offer because He is always faithful to His promises.
You and I have a great High Priest who is Faithful and True. He is the Alpha and Omega, the Prince of Peace, the Lord of Lord’s, and the King of all Kings. Whether you have marriage difficulties, house-selling problems, or another issue, as Christians, we have Beloved Friend in Jesus.
Resting in the Sovereign Care of the Lord
During this season of life, I’m learning once again the challenge of trusting and resting in the sovereignty of God. It’s hard to sit here day after day waiting on people to call to come see the house. For you, it may be different. You may be waiting to hear about your dream job or something else. The truth is, my friend, if we get right down into the nitty-gritty of it all, we all have it so good, better than we deserve. After all, we don’t deserve anything- we deserve hell, and the Lord gives us mercy and grace, instead.
During this season of challenge, I’m once again learning to trust and rest in the sovereignty of God. In the midst of my good friend’s pain and marital issues, the Lord used him to whack me upside the head, and remind me, “Dave you have a lot the Lord is doing” and that’s good! We need to be reminded of what the Lord is doing in and through us.
Maybe today the same is true for you. Perhaps you are in a season of life where it seems like all is lost. Everything seems to appear like you are grasping at straws and now you are at your wit’s end. Can I just say friend, I know how that feels like because I’m right there with you, but not to be clear right where you are at specifically emotionally or in your life experience. You see, you and I have One in Jesus who says He will never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). He will see us through. His plans for His people are always good (Romans 8:28) and always to conform us into the image of Jesus.
The circumstances of our lives are not behind the gaze of our Lord. He who sees all knows all, and since He sees and knows all, He cares for His people. He will hold us fast in the midst of the storms because He is faithful to all of His promises. That’s good news for you and I who are prone to wander, prone to be faithless, even as the Lord is always faithful.
Waiting is hard. I don’t know when my house will sell but I do know one thing. In this season of life, I’m trusting and resting in the sovereign care of the Lord. After all, He already knows who He wants in this house just as He knows when it will sell. At the end of the day, I can rest in that knowledge; knowing that in the perfect timing of the Lord—He will not only open the doors He wants open, but He will also close the doors He wants to be closed. You and I can rest comfortably all our days no matter what storms, trials, circumstances, or issues we are facing because of that truth. God is faithful, trust Him, and join me in resting more in the sovereign care of our Lord who sees, knows, and loves His Beloved.
