No one knows what tomorrow will bring and in that uncertainty can come anxiety, fear and even doubt. Can we really trust God with the details of our lives? How do we actually do that day in and day out? The reality is that he is waiting to give us m…

I'm knee-deep in a long and drawn-out season of waiting. I’m waiting for our house to sell in Georgia so we can move closer to our family in Nashville and you know what I've learned the longer I've had to wait?

Waiting is hard!

The waiting game is the hardest game because it seems like God isn’t answering my prayers and if God isn’t answering....is He even listening? Does He even care or has he completely forgotten me?

No matter what you’re waiting for, likely you're living with the same questions. I've had to look really honestly at my relationship with the Father and I've figured something out that’s brought a lot of clarity. What it boils down to is simple...

Can you trust Him with your future?

I know God always answers prayer, always. The answer is either:

Yes.

No.

Not now.

Although sometimes ‘not now’ looks and feels a lot like no, can I get an amen? But if I can’t trust Him with the waiting can I trust Him at all?

God is into relationship. He loves you and me and He wants to spend time with us. He wants us to want Him for who He is not just for what He gives. Imagine if you only loved your husband for the things he could provide for you. How would he feel if you didn’t really want to be with him, you just wanted stuff?

God desires fellowship, in fact He wants intimacy with you. In the waiting is the perfect time to get to know Him, to study his word, to make a habit of worship, to take time to pray.

When we move into trust, we can let God pick.

Maybe He’ll sell my house, maybe He won’t.

Maybe He’ll send you a husband, maybe He won’t.

Maybe you’ll get the diagnosis you’ve prayed for, maybe you won’t.

Maybe you’ll have another baby, maybe you won't. (I went through years of infertility and was only able to ever have one child though I was desperate for more. I tell my story here.)

After walking with Him for more than thirty years, He's taught me that His infinite purposes are beyond my finite understanding and His ways are higher than mine. What makes no sense to my finite mind makes infinite sense to God. Because the truth is, He sees what I can not. Why? He doesn’t need me to see it, He wants me to have faith. He wants me to trust.

Just like good parents everywhere, God wants to give us the desires of our hearts. During my years of learning to trust Him, I probably quoted this scripture from Psalms back to Him dozens of times! I learned He truly does want to answer our prayers but more than that, He wants to lead us into maturity. As Hebrews 2:10 reminds us, He’s bringing many sons to glory. And sonship takes time! (You mothers of boys know exactly what I’m talking about.)

Waiting helps to grow us up into disciples, ones who follow, ones who trust. As we trust Him, He can then trust us to lead, to learn, to love. If you’re a follower of Christ, sooner or later you’ll learn the waiting game is a big part of becoming a disciple.

What would life look like if you chose, today, right now, to embrace the waiting? To transfer your timeline into His hands?

What could you do differently in the precious season you have right now, before everything shifts and you get what you so ardently desire?

Jesus takes the slow road. He waited thirty years to begin His ministry, in fact, when His dear friend Lazarus died, Jesus stayed three days where He was before going to Lazarus' home. He’s not in a hurry for your situation either.

Let’s decide to embrace where we are, allowing it to mature and mellow us. Learning to wait is the best way I know to mature and grow because it requires absolute trust in the one who knows your life intimately. It means taking our hands off the thing we so desperately desire and laying it all at Jesus’ feet. It's letting Jesus pick and then discovering we're free to love God for who He is, not what He gives!