Decisions do not come easy for me as I fear being wrong. Fear can immobilize me every time as I do not want to make a bad decision, especially when its impact will be felt by those I love.
Decision making, and reliance on God for wisdom, is probably why this verse has become so beloved:
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”
(Proverbs 3:5-6, NASB)
Let’s take note of the word tenses. “Trust in the Lord” (verse 5) = present tense. But then “… and He will make …” (verse 6) = future tense.
While we must trust Him in the moment, moment by moment, and in every moment, it does not mean that He will show us now in this moment. There are times the answer does not come immediately, or in the time frame we may desire.
The questions often begin quietly, in the recesses of my mind, but they are there none the less. “Are you willing to wait for Me to show you? And when I show you, will you trust Me?”
He had truly put His finger on the pulse of this: Why do we have such a hard time waiting for Him to give us an answer or to show us what is best?
Waiting demands trust from us. It demands that we trust Him. Trust is built up over time and as we wait on Him, trusting Him to show us, it also grows our trust in God at the same time.
Fear, coupled with doubt, often threatens our ability to trust. The questions begin circulating:
- Will He give the desired outcome?
- Does He truly know our desires at this time?
- Does He realize how disappointed we will all be if this doesn’t work out?
Are you waiting on Him at this time? Are you trusting Him? If the answer should be a while in coming, will you forge ahead, or will you continue to wait on Him?
These may seem like simple questions to answer, but can often prove to be challenging. Waiting will also require that we not “depend on our own understanding” and go ahead with what seems to make sense to us.
The words to an old song (hymn) came back to my memory:
“Learning to lean
Learning to lean
I’m learning to lean on Jesus
Finding more power than I’ve ever dreamed
I’m learning to lean on Jesus.”
God always has our best interest at heart, even if the outcome turns out differently than we desired.
This trusting, waiting, and not depending on ourselves can be a challenge at times. Often it is the most difficult of choices we make. Yet it is the way we learn to lean on Jesus and our lives bear fruit.
May we grow in our ability to wait on Him,
trusting Him in all things,
and not depending on our own understanding.
Reflection:
Are you waiting on God for an answer to prayer? Will you trust Him as
you wait? Find a few verses, perhaps even Proverbs 3:5-6, and write them
on an index card. Keep it where you will be reminded to keep trusting
Him.
Photo by Sixteen Miles Out on Unsplash
So much goodness packed in here. The timing is not in our own understanding. The answer to a prayer is often not discerned before the answering either. Learning that rhythm and trusting it - do you feel that rhythm of the unknown clock sometimes? I think it's the rhythm of letting go and letting God -- until the inconsistency of myself gets in the way. You ask, "Will He give the desired outcome?" - He gives us what our soul's are crying for though it might not look like our fallen self thinks it should. I so enjoyed my time here today, Joanne! Shalom, Maryleigh
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