To get stronger, professional athletes do what’s called “hit the weight room.” They spend an incredible amount of time lifting weights to perfect their strength the best they can control. All the time in the weight room eventually pays off for the athletes because they become stronger and sharper.
A lot of times in life, we may not like it, but God will send us to the “wait room.” That’s right. The wait room. A place no one likes being. We’d rather be getting what we want instantly and enjoying life. Right?
Times of waiting are tough. I’m just being honest. It’s not fun to wait for things in life. We’d rather have it now. We want to be married now. We want the new house now. We want the new job now. We want kids now. We want everything NOW.
My waiting
In the middle of the waiting season God was (still is 🙂 ) working on my heart and lining up things so I would be right where he wanted me to be.
In the waiting, I had to relearn to submit to God and his careful hand allowing him to move in his time. I know this sounds like a typical christian catch phrase but it’s 100% true…
God makes everything right in his timing if we will just submit to him.
What happened
Part of my waiting meant leaving the job that I had and begin waiting while God was working.
I asked God several times throughout the waiting, “why not now?” He just kept telling me, “it’s not your time just yet. Your door will open. Just keep waiting.”
God was teaching me and Allison how to wait. On July 21st 2021 during all this waiting I asked God if this was it, if ministry was over for me. God told me this that day in my quiet time, “You are not done yet. There’s so much in you I want to bring out.”
I had to learn and depend on Jesus to take care of the details. The more I learned to depend on him the less I felt anxious about everything.
I journal a lot so that’s why I have specific dates for things 🙂 I was listening to one of my favorite preachers on March 8th 2021 during this waiting period and during the sermon he said:
“God wants to say this specifically to the person waiting right now. I feel prompted to say:
“He brought you out of where you were for healing and restoration. If he would’ve blessed you with what you are about to get blessed with before the healing and restoration it would’ve killed you.”
All I could say when I heard him say that was amen. Literally that’s what was happening. God knew my heart needed to be healed and restored before I could do anything else. From April/May 2020 to July 2021 God was healing, restoring and making me wait. I understand now and I’m so grateful!
God did some of greatest work in me while I was in that wait room. I want to tell you that God kept his promise. I count it joy that I had to wait for a little while. It was such a blessing even when I couldn’t see it at the time. If you want to know what God was doing in my life in the waiting go back and read last weeks post about Too Good To Not Believe because this is week 3 of a series of articles.
Side note about waiting… I feel it’s important to say this. A lot of times we’ll use the phrase “I’m waiting on God’s timing” as a crutch so we don’t have to do anything. Let me be clear, God does not bless inaction and laziness.
Sometimes it really is praying and waiting time. I found out for me, that was the case. I found that out because I kept trying to open doors myself because I’m not lazy and I didn’t want to be using “I’m waiting” as an excuse. That’s when God told me that it’s not going to happen on my time. That the only way I was going to see his promise was if I kept waiting. But for someone out there, God is saying to you, get up and take action. To take your next step.
I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. (Psalm 40:1-3)
You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. (Psalm 16:11)
But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31)
God does something powerful in the waiting. He does a work on us in the waiting. It’s different from any other work he’ll ever do. I want to share something with you that’s on my heart before we close out today. The best way I could think of doing this is to just say it to you. Press play and let me share something about waiting with you for moment. After I share, pray the prayer and listen to the song:
Prayer:
“Jesus, help me to wait well. I trust you in the middle of the waiting. I pray that the right doors would open for me and that I would get where you want me to go. Thank you Jesus that you are brining in the right breaks, the right people and the right opportunities. I surrender to you in the waiting God. Have your way with me. Amen.”
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Bryant Westbrook 