Waitin'

It's interesting how it always seems like we are waiting on The Lord for something. Just a couple of years ago, my heart was burdened with a request to see some changes in situations we were dealing with and it seemed like there was no end. I remember feeling so impatient, so badly wanting to come up with a solution to these problems, but God told me to wait. I learned then that while I wait, the best thing for me to do is to keep busy doing something else.

Kinda like when I'm at the doctor's office and I've arrived on one of those crazy busy days that you just know you will be waiting a while. I grab a magazine, read something on my phone, or watch some daytime talk show they have on the tv. I'm still so ready to get in to see the doctor and get on with it, but keeping my mind occupied keeps me from going crazy. (Patience isn't one of my better qualities, but I'm learning.)

When I felt that The Lord was going to call my husband to preach, and this wasn't a recent occurrence, I was so excited! I was pumped up to get busy right then and there. But The Lord wanted me to wait. I kept this hunch to myself and waited. We got busy in the music ministry God placed us in, I began learning to play piano to be able to offer more, I began praying for God to teach and train me for what was to come. There were times that I got discouraged because I felt like God wasn't hearing my prayers or the desires of my heart ... and I'd wonder why those feelings wouldn't go away! The Lord dealt with my husband's heart as He saw fit and that time of waiting was most certainly not pointless. We learned many valuable lessons and also gained experience that will help us in the future.

Now that my husband has surrendered and it's like "ah praise The Lord this is where we are supposed to be!!", we often talk about where The Lord will lead Joshua in the ministry and we get so excited about it. I get that impatient feeling inside of me, once again, and I just want to get movin! But I know God expects faithfulness out of us in what we have now before blessing us with more! We have a church to serve in, a pastor to lift up in prayer and encourage, people to love and encourage, souls to tell about Christ, songs to sing, babies to raise, and (in Joshua's case) messages to seek The Lord out on. That's pretty busy! So yes, I'm excited about the future and I'm like "oh man I've gotta wait again?!" ... but I'm learning that waiting on The Lord and living in the now while doing so is a constant theme one will find in their walk with Christ. It makes us stronger and gives us wisdom that I don't think we could have gained if everything just fell into our laps.

This applies to basically anything a person is going through whether it be seeking The Lord in ministry or waiting for personal prayers to be answered. Don't let the time of waiting discourage you and get your mind off of The Lord (as I so often have done), but get busy with what you've already got going on! Get yourself a vision for these things you desire and let it motivate you to keep moving. (Falling out is definitely not going to accelerate things.) Find someone to love on and encourage. Tell people about Jesus. Read your Bible. And don't forget to pray pray PRAY!

Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. 1 Corinthians 4:2