Asia 2013: Wait On The Lord

Wait on the Lord

"Wait on the Lord and keep His way, and He shall exalt you to inherit the land;When the wicked are cut off, you shall see it." Psalm 37:34

Nowadays we can't wait for a text message to send, let alone for God to reveal His will for our lives.  One of the greatest joys for me on this trip was being with other girls who feel the way I feel. We have been given hearts for missions in some capacity, some at home, some overseas; we are burdened and we so desire to just get going already; and still God is saying, "wait." "Wait, my child." I don't know exactly where God wants to use me.  I don't know if I'm supposed to sell everything and move to the other side of the world or if His plan for me is to be used to support and encourage someone else who is going to do that.  I don't know and I need to understand that that is okay.  I don't know because God hasn't told me yet.  What I do know though is that He is not withholding this information just to watch me squirm.  Just like we are to trust God with our provisions, we must learn, I must learn, to trust His timing.  I don't know why the time isn't now, but that is not for me to know at this moment.  One day I know I will look back and see how everything fit together just as it was supposed to.  I will see the obstacle that I would have met had I decided to go according to my time table and not the Lord's.  Even our good and pure desires can go wrong when we think our plan is better than anything God comes up with.  He sees the context, we see only what is right here, right now.  So, we wait.  If you're like me though, you wonder if God has already tried to tell you something and you just missed it.  On the trip, I don't even know how many times my sweet roommate and I said, "God, when you're ready you just need to hit me in the face with it." We don't want to miss it or be too preoccupied when God's timing is here, so we want it to be painfully obvious.  And you know what? It will be.  God isn't going to let His moment pass us by.  That is just another silly thing we find to worry about.  But who knows; maybe God will knock us over with His plan.  "Ask and you shall receive." :)

Even David, the man after God's own heart, the one with the faith to face a giant and the one who received complete forgiveness when he brought his sin out of the shadows, was told to wait and was even told that some of his heart's desires were not going to come to fruition.  He greatly desired to build a temple for the Lord; a dwelling place for the Arch of the covenant; and yet God told him no.  Instead God gave him the task of raising up Solomon who would build the temple (1 Chronicles 28).  So many of us will be called to go, to be His witnesses to the furthest parts of the world.  Some of us may be called to be godly parents, to instill in our children the desire to serve the Lord in whatever capacity He has planned perfectly for them.  I don't know what my place is yet, but I know that He is saying wait; and I know that He will reveal His plan to me when the time is right. If you too are feeling that you are to wait right now, then take heart.  Continue to seek God's will and find rest in Him.  You never know when the next chapter will start, and it could be pretty exhausting. 

Wait, but don't forget to listen.  We need to remember than even if seasons of waiting we must be in prayer.  Never stop asking God to tell you what to do.  Every day we are called to die to self.  Every day we called to carry our cross.  Every day we are to pray without ceasing. Not everything is a sign from God.  Maybe we are called to something despite a promotion, an acceptance letter or anything else our human minds would like to see as confirmation that our plan is working.  “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:9) Pray for discernment and peace.  God isn't hiding. Pursue Him and he will never leave you.