Worry While Waiting

I type when I feel I have been given something to say. I usually wake up with an idea in my head and an excitement builds until I put it into words. This month has been different, quieter than usual. It's not that God has been silent or distant, but I have not sensed a pull to act.

So I wait.

And I discover my anxiousness comes from wanting to do things in my own time, which is almost always NOW. I formulate a plan for how I want something to go or embrace a vision of my own creation only to forget: what is of God must come from God. It cannot come from me. If I run with what I want and ask him to bless it, it will not be the same as hearing from him what I need to do and acting upon it. And often in those situations, I give myself credit for the outcome.

Wait. Why is obedience in this area so hard? It does not produce tangible results, results I too often hang my value upon.

Waiting is hard, but in the stillness I can hear God's direction better than when I am constantly doing. Listening to him, waiting for a green light is not unproductive. It is right where he wants me, growing closer to him.

Be still and know that I am God. (Psalm 46:10a NIV)

Be silent, and I will teach you wisdom (Job 33:33b NIV)

Yet those who wait for the Lord
Will gain new strength;
They will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary. (Isaiah 40:31 NASB)

God's timing is perfect. I may not know why I am asked to wait, but I choose not to worry about getting something done that was never from him in the first place. I will wait in expectation for his green light before joyfully moving forward.


God, teach me contentment right where you have placed me now. You ask me to seek your face and listen to your truth. I know you have big plans. I trust you with the timing. Amen.

Not a Resolution, a Realization

I am not going to make a resolution this year. Supposedly, according to some no-doubt highly trustworthy survey that was taken, less than ten percent of resolutions are realized. I will go a different direction altogether.

This year I am going to walk confidently in the realization that I am REDEEMED. I will look at myself the way Jesus does, not with condemnation, but with love.

LOVE.

He accepts me as I am while encouraging me to draw closer to him. I will accept my faults while allowing him to guide me in better decisions.

I will not worry about what others think of me. Their judgements, vocalized or not, do not change who I am in Christ. Their opinions can fade in the light of the King of Glory.

But now, this is what the LORD says— he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine."

I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you.

REDEEMED.
 
My redeemer, guide me this year deeper and deeper into your truth. When I look in the mirror, remind me of who I am and whose I am.

"Redeemed" by Big Daddy Weave
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFC76Z_2oC4

Isaiah 43:1-3 NIV, Isaiah 44:22 NIV