While You're Waiting...

Happy Friday, Blogland!  I hope that the Autumn season has been kind to you all!  There's been all sorts of things happening around these parts!  The teen got an early admission and partial scholarship into his first choice college, so I'm gonna be an HBCU Mom!  He also got his driver's license (finally!).  The tween got promoted to honors math and is taking high school level Spanish. So the kids are doing ok (we still have some challenges, but they are ok).  October has been especially busy; unfortunately, I have not been able to squeeze in a Family Fall Outing (but I may be able to sneak one in on Sunday afternoon; we shall see).  It's my second favorite time of the year (Spring is my favorite); I love to watch the leaves change colors.  Here is one of my favorite fall photos:

Anyhoo, y'all know I'm from the Chicago area, right?  Something major is going on up this way - the Cubs are in the World Series!!! Hasn't happened in, well, let's just say a few years... I snapped this photo the other day to show how Chicago was celebrating:

And last but not least, last Saturday would have been my dear grandmother's 99th birthday if she were still living.  It wasn't a sad day; I spent a lot of it just reflecting on her and her legacy.  She loved baseball and would sincerely be over the moon about the the Cubs in the World Series right now!

But, onto our topic (side note:  I hate when I haven't written in awhile; I have so much to catch you all up on and then these posts are incredibly lengthy!  Working on it... I promise!). I have a confession to make:  I. HATE. WAITING.  Ok, wait. Hate is such a strong word. How about this:  I'm not very good at waiting.  Now, I can wait reasonable amounts of time in line, at a restaurant, to vote, to get a gas pump.  But in general?  I just really have a hard time waiting.  Case-in-point:  last week I sent my friend a text message and when I didn't get a response in about 20 minutes, I sent back this:  "Uh, hello?"  And he (gently) reminded me that he was, as I was, in the process of leaving for work and getting those things done and called me impatient. All I could do was laugh, because it's certainly the truth.  I'm not as bad as the man in the Fifth Third commercials (have you seen it?) but still, I'm not a very patient person.  Not even, dare I say it?  With God.

Yeah, I said it.  Look at me, owning my truth!  I am not patient, not even when I'm waiting on God.  Now this isn't all of the time, but it certainly happens when I figure, in my own mind, that it has been long enough and surely He has come to a decision by now!  I know, laughable, right?  But let me give you a very real example.  So, it's been a whopping 1186 days, or, 3 years, 2 months and 28 days since I lost my job (I didn't know those exact numbers, had to use Google to find a calculator for it).  And I'm no closer this year to having a full-time gig than I was a year ago, two years ago or even three years ago.  It's been very frustrating, but also a situation that fuels my impatience.  Because you see, I figure that He has had enough time to move mountains and send me a job!  But, it just hasn't happened like that.  And I won't lie, I am at the edge of worry about the whole thing, because, let's face it, that's a mighty long time to not have a steady income in your household, right?  But, on the other hand, He hasn't failed me yet, so why would he start now?  The Lord's prayer reminds us to ask for our "daily bread" - remember that post?  Here it is if you need a refresher.  So I try to remember that and not worry about days that haven't come and just focus on each new day.

But what do you do while you're waiting?  Real talk - what do you do?  When you look around and it seems like everyone else is getting a new job, a new house, a new car, engaged (and you can't even keep a boyfriend/girlfriend), pregnant, travelling - it can make you feel bad or worse, it can spark feelings of envy or resentment, especially if you feel you are just as "___" fill in the blank as they are.  Bottom line?  You want to know when it's going to be your turn.  Or worse still, you think that God has forgotten about you.  And your shoulders slump and you just want to give up.

This here thing?  I'm speaking from experience.  I've felt all of those things, even as recently as yesterday.  True story, I was on social media, scrolling down my timeline, and ran across a friend celebrating an anniversary and while I was happy for them, I felt some kind of way. Why? Because I'm divorced, and the marriage I thought I would have had by now didn't happen and because I want to celebrate anniversaries too, darn it!  Funny, but true.  

So for real, what should you be doing while you are waiting for your breakthrough, blessing, miracle, testimony, answered prayer - whatever you call it - what should you be doing while you are waiting????  I'm pretty sure that feeling envious and resentful aren't on the list, although those are both very real emotions for when you feel that God has forgotten you. Ouch.  Who wants to feel like they are forgotten?  Unloved?  Abandoned?  No one!  It's not a good feeling at all!  

Know that God doesn't want you to feel those things either; those negative feelings are the trick of the enemy to get you off course and to stop you from a) praying and b) believing in the power of your prayers.  Another trick the enemy uses is the trick of comparison, and social media is a powerful tool that feeds into that (hmm, I will write about that another time). You with me?  Stay with me.

The first thing you must do is to remember these things:  1) God never forsakes you.  2) God is good all the time.  3) Nothing is impossible if you believe.  4) God's word endures forever.  5) It's ALWAYS God's timing, and not yours.  6) Continue to pray. 7) Trust God no matter the circumstances.  8) Stand firmly on his promises.  9) Never give up or give in. 10) Give God praise while you're still waiting on the answers to your prayers.  I also found a blog post devoted to this very topic, entitled "Helpful Ways to Wait on God When You Don't Want To," that did an excellent job of providing some Do's and Don'ts.  You can read it here.

All this is well and good, right?  But the reality is that while you are praying, you will need to add some scriptures to those prayers to help you to stand firm in your faith.  Here are are few you can use for that purpose (these should go right in your war room - whether that's a closet, poster board or notebook):

Psalm 37:7-  Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him (NIV).

Psalm 27:13-14- I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.  Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord (NIV).

James 1:12 - Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love Him (NIV).

Hebrews 6:15 - And so, after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised (NIV).

Hosea 6:3 - Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge him.  As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth (NIV).

Psalm 13:5 - But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation (NIV).

Psalm 62:5 - Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from Him (NIV).

1 Peter 5:10 - And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast (NIV).

Last week, I was listening to Steve Harvey on the radio ('round about 5 am, at the beginning of his show, he provides some very real, spiritual motivation for his listeners), and he said something so profound that I had to make a voice note so that I wouldn't forget what he was saying.  What did he say?  Here it is:  "Pray for strength for the journey while you are waiting.  Don't get knocked off course because oftentimes the blessing comes after the test.  Don't pray for obstacles to be removed, because they are part of the journey.  Both the heavens and the imps hear your prayers, and they will try to knock you off course."  How about I was ready to shout in my car???

I was sharing some of my anxieties with a friend yesterday over email, and she wrote back to me:  "Remember delayed is not denied God is working on some things in your life. God see & know everything you're going through and if you just hold on things will change for your good. God want to do a new thing in your life and a fresh thing in you. You must be grounded to realize the season you're about to come into."  It brought tears to my eyes, and just confirmed that I was supposed to write this post (the topic came to me a few weeks ago but I'm just getting around to it) and also gave me the will to go on just one more day.  

Last, but not least, I found a prayer on Pinterest (yes, Pinterest) that I encourage you to put in your war room as well (I certainly intend to).  It is originally from here, https://heathercking.org/, and it is called "A Prayer for When You Are Waiting" and it goes like this:

My Father,

I know I am impatient, so prone to worry, to give up, to lose hope.

Help me to rest in Your promises today.

In this season of waiting, renew my joy in this moment so that I do not miss Your presence in this place.  Thank You for being with me and for never giving up on me.  Thank You for always working for my good and for Your glory even when I can't see.  

In Jesus' name, Amen.

So hold on just a little while longer and wait on the Lord.  I'm waiting - and praising Him while I do.  What about you?  You know what to do - Holla @ Darvi and let me know what you do while you're waiting!  Have a wonderful weekend and as always, be blessed.  Here's some music to take us out:

xoxoxo 

~ Darvi