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Presented by Lisa Bishop
I want to remind you being patient with God’s timing is worth the wait.
About five years into my faith journey, I was desperately seeking answers to what I should do with my life. At that time, I was in a corporate job I could do and do well, but it wasn’t super fulfilling. I distinctly remember sitting in my living room talking to God saying, “God, I would really love to have a job where I get to do life with women, pouring into their faith and coming alongside them in every aspect of life.” Well, let’s just say that prayer was not answered until seven years later when “out of the blue,” I received a call from the church I had been a member of for 12 years. They created a new position for a director of women’s small groups, and they wanted me to apply.
Now you may think I am crazy, but I didn’t initially see this opportunity as an answer to the prayer I had prayed seven years prior. It didn’t look like what I thought it would, which is a story for another day. But after several weeks of prayer, I accepted the role. There are a couple things I want to point out in my story I hope will encourage you in the waiting.
The first is this: God does not always answer your prayers on your timeline. I know it is hard to hear. Especially if you have been waiting for quite some time. But God sees the full picture, and you don’t. While it may seem unfair, God is the one who is aware of what you need and when you need it. His timing is perfect.
The second is this. Don’t squander the time in the waiting. While my job in the corporate arena left gaps in me feeling content, I intentionally looked for ways to invest my time outside of work that were life-giving. And one of those ways was by getting deeply involved in serving at my church. Serving not only allowed me to use my gifts, but it also positioned me to practice ministry and build trust and credibility with church leadership, which ultimately resulted in being offered a full-time ministry position. All too often we can be so focused on what we want things to look like we miss God’s provision in the meantime. How might God be calling you to invest your time as you wait?
The final thing I want to mention is you will not always get what you pray for. God answers all our prayers but the way he provides may be very different from your vision of his provision. This is where determining to trust the Lord comes into play.
The answer to your prayers may not look like you thought but as Proverbs 3:5-6 reminds us,
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him and he will make your paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6).
God’s timing is worth the wait.