Do you find yourself in limbo, knowing something is around the corner – but not yet given?
What you need or think you want for your life is not being ignored. There are always answers, and there is always a plan. Waiting seems so hard when we are young, but it gets easier as we get older – especially for believers who have witnessed God’s hand in their seasoned life.
As Habakkuk cries out, “How long, oh Lord?” you might have the same cry while experiencing an event you thought was temporary but lasting longer, and you no longer have the strength to move forward but move forward, you must.
You lament, “I have prayed and prayed, but God isn’t listening,” or “God must not love me like He does others,” or “God is punishing me.”
Why are we so apt to give the credit to God for our misery?
From the beginning of the fall of man from the garden, we live in a dying, decaying world where we face death in all sorts of ways – yet, our Father protects us until He is ready to call us Home.
For the believer, death is simply graduating. Our eternal Home is where we all belong. But God has a purpose for our lives on earth, and nothing is wasted.
Even if we made decisions without consulting Him, He knew beforehand and already had a plan to use any mistake for the good, for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. (Rom 8:28). HIS purpose. His call. He knew who would love Him. He chose you. That means you are called, and you have a purpose.
Isn’t that enough to get you excited? In my early 40s (the story I share in my book), I learned to face anything the enemy threw my way, and I met it with confidence. “Lord, You are doing something, aren’t you?” I knew His plan was not to harm me but for me to prosper (Jer. 29:11), so why should I worry?
What if we were made for such a time as this? Read the story of Esther. I had hoped God would never call me to anything like that, or surely I would fail Him. Yet, whatever I faced in the journey He had for me, how could I fail if my attitude was the same as Esther’s?
How much faith did I have in God to rescue me or see me through? If I didn’t feel I had enough faith, I was the only one who could decide to change that by “letting go and letting God.” But our sinful, selfish nature might tell us, “I don’t want to have more faith; I like where things are – this is all I am willing to give….”
When I entered the time in my life with emphatic trust in Him, it was when I had nothing left to give. No strength or energy to keep fighting. But my hope was still in Him. I decided to fully rely on Him to rescue me. And because I was “all in” and willing to do whatever He asked, I was listening. What I thought was so hard (to let go of control) was not hard.
Battling our will makes it seem like letting go is the hardest thing, but it isn’t once we take that step.
The Lord promises to equip us. He promises to rescue us. He is FOR us. His will for our lives is good. He will remove what doesn’t belong – let Him. He will speak to you – listen. He will tell you where to walk – go.
Choose today how you see the limbo in your life. Instead of feeling held back, or drained of energy, just be held. Let our Father hold you. Weep in His arms. Give Him your most resounding cries. Grieve your pain. And then, TRUST. Trust Him to provide an answer – in His time. Look for what He may be teaching you in your hardship.
Look for the ways He uses this moment, which might even be for someone else’s benefit. Are you willing to go through something if God chooses to bring something from it into someone else’s life while using you? How much of ourselves does God have?
This is what I had to ask myself years ago, and I had become aware of His hand working all around me. It was easy to get excited.
Total trust and surrender change our lives. It gives us freedom. There is purpose to our time of limbo.