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Before you solve your problem – Wait

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My nature is to problem solve. I’m a fixer and a doer. Recently, I’ve been reminded how my nature, if not tended well,  can hinder the work of God.

When faced with a problem, we know the first step is prayer. When I’m waiting on God to answer my personal prayers, I don’t always wait well.

I have a dear friend I frequently go to for prayer. Her response is always, “Tell me when God does the miracle.” She EXPECTS God to do a miracle every single time. She doesn’t assume to know how He will respond, but her confidence is a steadying balance to my anxiety.

Recently, one of my sons played a round of golf and left a shared family range finder on the golf cart. We didn’t discover he’d left it until 15 hours later when the golf course was closed. If you aren’t a golfer, a range finder is a very expensive tool to help you read distances to select the proper club for your shots. Realizing this mistake at 10:00 at night did not set me up for a good night’s sleep.

My son was immediately apologetic and promised to make it right. He’d either track it down or replace it with his own money. He set his alarm for early the next morning and called the golf course to hear the disappointing news that they didn’t have the range finder. After I returned from the gym, my son was already online looking at how much he would have to spend to replace this range finder. It would be a major setback to his bank account, but he was ready to just go ahead and solve the problem.

I had a thought though. Yes, we could solve our own problem and buy a new one. Or we could ask God to help us. Maybe we should slow down fixing the problem and wait for God’s response to our request. This sounds obvious as I type it, but I have a feeling you can relate.

I urged my son to give God time to answer – to wait on God. I encouraged him to go up to the golf course in person. “You just never know. Maybe the person on the phone didn’t actually look. Maybe he didn’t care that much. Or maybe seeing you there will urge them to look harder. Regardless, we will pray, act, and wait.”

I had full confidence God would answer our prayers to find this tool. Why? Because I’ve seen Him answer every single small prayer to find a long lost treasure over the course of my boys’ lives. We’ve prayed for lost phones, keys, remotes, wallets, you name it – we’ve lost it and asked God to shine His light on it.

When my son left for the course, I began praying. Ten minutes later he walked in the door with a huge grin on his face holding the range finder. “I knew it!” I cried. I absolutely knew God was going to answer.

The oddest part is when he asked the guy running the pro shop if they had one turned in, the guy asked what it looked like. So he pulled out a picture of our exact finder. The guy whipped open the drawer and said, “Here you go!”

When I reflected on this entire incident, I couldn’t help notice how because I was praying for someone else’s problem I was actually expecting God to answer, I was waiting with anticipation, and I was excited to see how God responded. When it’s my own situation I’m praying for, I tend to anxiously wait with no anticipation or excitement. It’s as if I trust God more with someone’s else’s problems than my own.

The other thing I noticed is how quick we can be to skip over asking God and go straight to problem solving. This is especially tempting if we have the resources – money, time, skills. Sometimes we lean into our self-sufficiency while God is just waiting and hoping we will turn to Him and allow Him to bear our loads and solve our problems.

The lesson I learned that day is to pray then wait. Wait for God to answer. Give Him time to work. Be excited and thank God for giving me yet one more opportunity to see Him work in my day.

Some prayers need longer times than others to be answered. I want to give God space to work. I want to invite Him into all my silly needs and my needs that feel impossible and suffocating. He cares. He is capable. He is waiting on us to want to partner with Him.

Where are you waiting for God to answer you? Are you watching with excited expectation? Praise Him and thank Him that He is a God who longs to walk with His people. We can trust Him with our smallest requests. And we can trust Him with the deepest longings of our hearts. He is so good to us.

 

 

 

 

Silent Saturday Speaks

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Jesus was crucified on Friday and resurrected on Sunday. But Saturday happened too. On this side of the resurrection 2000 years later, we can rest on Saturday because Sunday happened. On Good Friday we rejoice because Sunday is coming.

But His mother and disciples who lived on the day of waiting before Sunday arose. What did they do?

They rested.

Luke 23:56 “Then they returned and prepared spices and perfumes. And they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment.” WHOA!

As we worshiped on Good Friday the Lord whispered to me about Saturday. It’s barely mentioned in the gospels. But it was there. An act of obedience.

To rest is to lay down our strive and to abide and trust. It’s easy for us to rest on this Saturday because we know the outcome. The question is can we rest in our “Saturdays” in which we haven’t lived through our “Sundays” just yet. So we haven’t seen the outcome, the hope risen, our circumstance redeemed or resurrected.

Today may we mourn the death and rest in the wait of our hope. Saturday, between the death of Friday and resurrection of Sunday, is a day of deep trust, obedient rest, and the wait.

May we wait well. May we trust and obey. For there’s no other way.

Trusting God with a perfectly failed plan

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Of all this year challenged me with, the one that stands out most is the thought of how much I actually trust God. When circumstances make zero sense or simply don’t follow the plan I hoped for, how quick am I to reach toward frustration? This year exposed the impatience which dwells in me.

The last day of the year can hold a tinge of pressure as we look back and assess the last 365 days.

  • Did we learn anything?
  • Did we grow?
  • Did we reach our goals?
  • Did we grieve our losses well?
  • Did we heal?
  • Did we forgive?
  • Did we achieve?
  • Did we strengthen our faith?

As I typically do when the year draws to a close, I’m reflecting on what I’ve learned.

For Christmas this year, we gifted our boys with a trip instead of material gifts. We’ve done this several times over the years. This time we flew out the day after Christmas to enjoy five days in Arizona. While soaking in the Arizona sun, the Lord began showing me  some similarities in how I plan trips with how I attempt to plan my life.

Intentionality is important to me. Without intention, so much is at risk for loss and waste. Missed opportunities and time escaping before our eyes. The tagline of my blog is “Inspiring & encouraging you to live with intentional purpose.” I parent this way. Attempting to make the most of the brief time the Lord allows to raise these boys, to create as many memories and experiences as time permits.

Trip planning is one of my favorites. In fact, one of my dream jobs is a travel agent. I love to travel, but I love to plan almost as much. I love the hours and hours I spend searching for the perfect house to rent or hotel to book. I love planning the itinerary, deciding what to do and plotting out the logistics to fitting it all in perfectly. If given as a gift, I become giddy with excitement imagining the creative ways to present the gift and the looks of excitement to come.

I spend more time than necessary planning trips because I’m reaching towards perfection the entire time. I want the experience to be the absolute best it could possibly be. Perfection has been a battle my entire life. I’ve learned it’s not something I will overcome once and for all. It loves to rear its head in various forms.

I’ve shared about this in Illuminate – Seeing God by the Light of His Word. 

“I strove to prove myself worthy, to validate my roles and positions, to find identity in all the wrong places, even as a believer. In my personal quest for perfection, I created idols – idols of family, ministry, home, and work. I worshiped at the altar of Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, or words of encouragement from the ones I served. In my strive for perfection, I could at times leave no room for the perfect God because I worked too hard to be my own god.”

God often speaks to me through story. I want to share a story with you from our recent trip and how God brought me right back to  the question, “Do you trust me?”

Follow with me along this story. I’ll point out roadblocks, provision points, expectation + gratitude moments, disappointment, and ultimately the decision to trust God no matter what, even if I never know why. Yes, it’s through the story of a trip plan gone wrong, but God often speaks to me the deeper questions and answers through the experiences in my life He walks me through. I hope He speaks to you here as well.

For our Arizona trip, I planned two golf outings, three hikes, much shopping/eating/exploring, and the once in a lifetime, bucket list excursion in a hot air balloon.

Finding and deciding on which hot air balloon ride took a couple of hours on the internet. I read all I could find on the most reputable companies. In the process, I found a Groupon special for the company I chose to book with. I tried no less than ten times to complete the purchase through Groupon, but each time the site timed out on me and refused to process the transaction. (Roadblock #1) (Frustration #1)

The Groupon special offered savings worth a couple hundred dollars. I emailed the hot air balloon company explaining the situation. She immediately responded what a great price it was and offered to match the Groupon price for us when we booked direct through their site. That’s when I discovered the hidden blessing in the frustrations of a site not working. Groupon required full payment and no refund for cancelled excursion. It’s the risk you take to save hundreds of dollars. Booking direct through the company offered zero risk. You paid after the balloon flight and nothing in the event of cancellation due to weather circumstances. (Provision #1)(Gratitude #1)

Road block #1  +  provision #1 = Foreshadow #1

I could not WAIT to see the boys’ expressions when they discovered this gift. I ordered a handpainted ornament through the company. It was painted with a desert scene and a picture of the hot air ballon. This is how we would tell them what we planned to do with them, plus we would have the reminder on the tree each year going forward of an incredible experience of a lifetime. (Expectations)

I ordered the ornament weeks before Christmas, yet it never arrived. Tracking information showed it began the journey toward us the day I ordered and spent weeks in a postal facility in Denver, CO. (Frustration #2)

Christmas morning, rather than the expected moment of opening a handpainted ornament, we simply showed them the website and explained the gift. (Expectations, Disappointment, Gratitude all intertwined) (Foreshadow #2)

Our excursion was booked for Day 3 of the trip. It was a sunset ride lifting off at 6:30 am. This required I wake around 4:30 am. We all managed to wake on time, bundle up for a chilly ride, and drive the 30 minutes to the location. We arrived about 15 minutes early. I had a nervous feeling. It felt we were in the right spot, we saw other cars waiting, but we didn’t see the van for the balloon company. (Foreshadow #3)

The van arrived, he began setting up his check in table. The exterior building light wouldn’t turn on. He tried several times to no avail. He made the comment how weird that was. “It was working fine yesterday. Guess we will do this a different way.” He pulled out his iPhone flashlight. (Foreshadow #4)

He handed me the waivers to sign, told me we were riding in the van to the liftoff location. We’d leave within minutes. No less than one short minute later, the check in guy called everyone over with these words, “Guys, I’m sorry I have to ruin your day, but your balloon flight has just been cancelled. We received word from the pilot that the winds are too strong for a safe flight this morning. But you can try to rebook for a later flight.”

I felt every ounce of shock and deflation in that moment. The weather looked beautiful to me. I felt no wind at all, but also I don’t understand weather patterns in the slightest.

The moment held that realization of the fact that we had no control of the situation. We held in our hands our hopes and expectations for that morning fully deflated, frustration welling up, and a whisper to trust God. All the foreshadow moments began filling my mind. God’s provision ahead of time, protecting our money He knew would be lost if that Groupon had processed.

Steve quickly found a breakfast spot and as we drove to eat what did we see over the mountains? Yes, hot air balloons floating gently, peacefully into the sunrise. (Frustration, Disappointment) Why did others get to experience a safe ride and we couldn’t? Have you ever asked God these questions?

I attempted to rebook, but no flights were available. The next few moments we had a choice to make. Which path is right? Is God directing? Do we simply trust the cancel and stop trying to make it work? Do we accept it simply wasn’t meant to be? Or was God directing us to another company? Or was that us trying to control the situation and make a way no matter what God suggested?

In those minutes I’d found another company with spots open the next day. It would cost more by a couple of hundred dollars. Because we saw a way to make it happen, did that mean it was wise? Or should we accept the fact that our expectations didn’t come to pass, allow ourselves to feel the disappointment, but ultimately trust that God is good and knows things we simply don’t know.

The hard thing for me is the fact I always want to know. I always want to put all the puzzle pieces together and see the picture, even if it looks different than I envisioned, I find comfort in seeing it make sense. I also want to follow God’s path rather than my own, but in this situation, I simply was unsure.

We began praying and asking God to guide. I had a thought after praying. I would not book with another company, even if spots allowed, but instead if our current company had cancellations the next morning, we would be prepared to take the spots. We let the company know we’d be open to taking any cancellations they had, but it never happened.

When the day passed by, we had fully accepted the disappointment of the excursion that simply wasn’t meant to be. We didn’t understand why, but decided the only choice was to trust God. God is good. Always.

For me I realize it’s so easy to trust God when I see the path and the reasons for the roadblocks, but so very hard when I never know why.

What do I believe about God truly? Do I believe He is a very good God who desires to give good gifts? Do I believe He’s not a God who delights in watching His children disappointed but is also a God who knows our character and faith can only be shaped and strengthened at times when circumstances don’t go our way?

And this is how my year is ending with God allowing me to walk through a scenario that really is a picture of my entire year. Do I REALLY trust God like I say I do? Do I trust Him in the good and bad equally? Do I believe He is good when life is floating in the air as much as sitting in deflated hopes and expectations? Will I follow Him where He leads even if I see I can make my own way on a path I create because I think I know better? Or will I hold His hand on a different path knowing that anywhere with Him is better than alone along my own rocky way?

Before I wrap up this post, I have to mention our trip was beyond amazing. Truly losing one excursion didn’t take away any joy from five days of amazing family time and memories we created. If I thought I could hold your attention here a bit longer, I’d share how many times God showed up with surprise gifts along this trip. It was all a gift.

This year has been quite the year. It’s taught me to continue living with intention. We simply don’t know what tomorrow holds. If you can take the trip, take the trip. If you have breath in your lungs, live today fully. If you have your loved ones in your life, tell them what they mean to you.

“I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war.” Revelation 19:11

Trust God. He is trustworthy. He is faithful. He is true. Even in the roadblocks and frustrating disappointments, He is good and we can trust Him.

“Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails.” Proverbs 19:21

 

How to not miss seeing God

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The religious leaders who spent a lifetime studying God didn’t recognize Him when He stood right in front of their faces before Christ would die for our sins.

The people who worshiped Him as God, didn’t recognize Him as their eternal King and the Son of God when they shouted “Hosanna!”

It’s easy to view with a critical eye in hindsight. With a backward view, we see the full picture to the place we stand in the present. We see all the pieces fitting together that brought Jesus to where He stood the week of His crucifixion.

Jesus didn’t come the way man expected. Jesus wasn’t the picture the people envisioned of the Messiah. They missed God because He didn’t meet their personal expectations.

Father, let me not miss seeing You because You appear in a way I’ve not envisioned. Guard my heart and give sight to my eyes.

How often do I attempt to define God’s ways? How often do I place expectations on Him? How often do I question circumstances that seem to move in the opposite direction I want them to go?

Some of the ones crying out for a king wanted immediate relief from Roman rule. They couldn’t see eternally because they were so focused on the harsh brutality they walked in. While I can’t begin to imagine walking in the shoes of the people who lived when Jesus walked the earth, I can relate in how easily I place my focus on the here and now rather than eternity.

When I watch my children hurting, I want to fix it right away. I want to take away the pain and make their worlds right.

Jesus loves us with a love so pure, so holy, and so unconditional.  [Tweet “Jesus tipped this world upside down in order to right it.”]

The heart of God is love. A love so enormous it would go to an extreme no human mind could conjure up. A love so magnificent it would come in a way that seemed ridiculous. A baby in a manger. A man riding a donkey into the people who would nail Him to a cross within days.

In our personal walks with the Lord, we become disheartened when we don’t see faster results to our prayers. We begin to wonder if our prayers are being heard.

And if we are completely honest with ourselves, at times we convince ourselves we are trusting God, but our souls know better. Buried deeper in our hearts than we want to go, whispered lies from the enemy have found a secret hiding spot. They live in the dark places so they are hard to identify. They whisper in a low tone so as not to draw attention to themselves. When they surface, they retreat faster than they arose.

One of our pastors preached a sermon saying he has learned to change his question from “God, why are you allowing this?” to “God, what are you up to?”

I love that perspective. That question is full of trust and curiosity. It’s from a position of knowing the character of God and surrendering to His Lordship.

Today, may we choose a deeper level of surrender than we’ve yet offered.

May we surrender to the love of our King.

May we allow the truth of who He is cleanse the infections attacking the affections of our hearts.

May we humbly confess that we’ve attempted to define an undefinable God. We’ve expected Him to do a certain thing or appear in a certain way. Therefore, maybe we’ve at times missed Him while looking for the “Him” we created or imagined.

May we receive new sight today to see truth in order to worship in spirit and in truth.

May we quietly reflect this Holy Week on who God is by the light of His Word.

Because He is the great I Am, I can simply be who He created me to be, abiding in Him as a child of the King.

Lord, give us a holy hunger for You. Today, we choose to lay down our own agendas and reach for Your hand. Today we walk with You, open to seeing You afresh. We open Your Holy Word today and ask You to speak to us through Your Holy Spirit. Amen

If you want to quietly reflect on the character of God, I invite you into a 14 day experience through

Illuminate – Seeing God by the Light of His Word.

audio devotional

It’s 10 minutes a day for 14 days.

If you are hungry for deeper intimacy with God, Illuminate is for you.

If you are tired of fear, anxiety, frustration, and pressures of life having their way in your heart, Illuminate is for you.

When the plan makes zero sense

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followplan

I used to be so organized! Really I did. I used to make monthly menu plans, cleaning schedules, well-planned to-do lists. In the past, I would have packed for a trip a week ahead of time. I would have begun preparing mentally well in advance. I would have plotted out the trip before leaving so as to have no wasted time.

Now my kids are older, and I spend all of my free time writing, studying, or speaking. So I put a significant amount of planning and organizing there, which means something had to give. I think secretly my family is glad about this. It makes a not free-spirited girl a little bit free-er…is that a word?

For our recent trip to Orlando, I mentioned in a previous post that we surprised the boys with a day at Magic Kingdom. The old me would have spent an enormous amount of time planning, plotting, or organizing to maximize that day. But I simply had no time, so the night before we left, I hopped on The Unofficial Guide to Disney and for $12.95 purchased their very well thought out, super-organized touring plan suited for a family with only 1 day and children at various ages and stages.

This plan makes no logical sense at all. It has you zigging and zagging all over the park rather than visit each ride in each section while you are there. A few times Steve gave me that look. The one that said, “Seriously….we have to walk all the way to the other side when the ride right here has a very small wait? This makes no sense.”

The plan seemed to make no sense. But we made a choice to trust the plan even though it made no sense whatsoever. There were so many moments that temptation was great to break the plan, to follow our own ideas, which seemed right. Then we would remember we had chosen to trust the plan.

We followed the plan exactly. Never veering to the right or to the left. Never following our own ideas, even when they seemed to make more sense. We followed the course laid out for us.

And the most amazing thing happened. We finished every single attraction on that list in record time. A plan that estimated we would finish just prior to park closing, we finished before dinner. On a peak day, during spring break!

Every single day I question God’s plan. Not out loud, not in a way anyone would recognize as questioning God. It’s a little more silent inside me. The way I become exasperated over correcting the same behavior over and over again in my children. The way I question why I continue to have to walk through various difficult situations that appear hopeless. The way I become restless and discontent in a current situation, looking to what I want rather then grasping gratitude for what I have. The way I worry and cover it by saying I’m just “thinking”.

Oh, yes, I question God’s plan. When I look at the world around me, despair beckons me to crumble at its feet. When I hear words spoken from one of my children that I swore my children would never say, and in my heart I just want to throw in the towel and admit defeat. When a difficult person continues to present difficult situations and I quit praying because I’ve decided to take sides with hopelessness. These are the silent ways I question His plan every single day.

In my heart, I trust God. I trust His Word. I sit at His feet and pour out my heart, I am strengthened by His Word. Then I take 2 steps into reality and how quickly I forget. So today I visualize following that silly, illogical touring plan. Choosing to follow what felt unnatural. That’s what it often feels like to follow God.

[Tweet “Following God often feels unnatural.”]

I choose to follow God’s plan, even when – to my human mind – it makes no logical sense. Because I know He is faithful. I know He cares for me. I know He holds me in His right hand. I know He is compassionate towards me. I know He knows my fears and struggles better than I do. I know He sees ahead what I can’t see. I know He laid a plan for me before I was born. I know that nothing can thwart His plan. I know all of this. Today I choose to walk in the belief that His plan is perfect even when I can’t see the sense in it.

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

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