It can be the hardest, and possibly the most rewarding time of your life. You can pray with excitement and anticipation and see God working while you wait. But when your answer (either a clear yes, or no) doesn't come after weeks, months or even years of prayer and waiting it can also be a time of great disappointment.
Sometimes it's so hard for me to separate the eternal from the material. At times I pray for something, and feel so strongly that God is leading me in a direction, and when the answer is wait, I feel like God is absent. Has God changed His mind, or is He calling me to something greater, calling me to a place where I learn to trust Him more by waiting on Him. I know that He is constant, and never changing, I however, change my mind daily, and allow my emotions to lead me, instead of the Holy Spirit. So how do I overcome this mental/spiritual road block and find joy in the midst of trial? It comes down to a choice. We must CHOOSE joy. We need to make a conscious choice to make our joy in the Lord the top priority no matter what our trial or circumstance may be. All of this is MUCH easier said than done. The more we trust the Lord, the more inclined we will be to choose joy.
He knows the plans that He has for me, and they are better for me then I may ever know. I may never know here on earth the reasons why God chooses to do the things He does, but I am not called to understand, I am called to trust. I can choose joy when I trust the Lord because I know that God is faithful and He loves me (Jeremiah 29:11). This is just another reason why I can all smile at the future. When disappointment sets in, set your eyes on the Lord once again, and choose joy!
September 24, 2012
The Lord laid another thought on my heart about waiting on Him. What if He is asking me not to do ANYTHING else but wait on Him. Don't actively look, just wait. Then the question ran through my head, "Shouldn't I be proactive and diligent in seeking and searching?" I think the answer many times is, yes, we do need to seek and search, but we don't always need to move ahead. Right now, for me the Lord is asking me to wait on Him, don't move ahead, just wait, pray, and wait some more.
You hit the "nail on the head", Erin. Is.40:31 also speaks to this issue. Keep writing and praticing the presence of God in your life and He will continually "conform you to His image" (Rom.8:29)
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