Written by Lisa Jackson
Waiting is not something I am particularly good at. It is something I generally struggle with, but recently, it has been an even bigger struggle for me. But God is good; he has used my time of waiting to change me.
When Covid started and we were in quarantine, the Lord used those months to begin to work on healing in my life. He took that time to deal with issues that had been a part of my life for a long time. The more I forgave and healed, the more I heard from Him.
Over the summer, He began to lay on my heart that change was coming for our family. He slowly used events in our life to show me that He was calling my husband into full-time ministry. My husband is a Program Manager for a big company here in St. Louis. He has always done well in his job and enjoys the work he does. So, when the Lord started showing me full-time ministry was up ahead for us, I questioned it. I waited a couple of weeks to mention any of this to my husband. When I finally got up the courage to tell him what I was feeling, I was surprised to hear my husband was not shocked. His response was that the Lord was speaking the same thing to him.
Since then, he has taken a class at Midwestern Baptist Seminary and has been meeting with our Pastor regularly. We feel he is being called to be a Pastor of Administration/Leadership. We are excited to see what is up ahead for us. Excited to see where the Lord has us serving. But the waiting…the not knowing… the trusting. It is hard. It is hard not to question why we are waiting or what the outcome will be. It is hard to trust that God knows the outcome and has a perfect plan for us, in HIS timing.
So often I want it in MY timing. The Lord is showing me in this waiting season that I need to trust Him. That I need to work on the things in my life that need pruning. That I need to sit at His feet and let Him work while we wait. Just because I cannot see God working out the details does not mean He is not doing anything. I need to trust Him and His timing.
Over the last couple of months, I have clung to this verse: “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland” (NIV Isaiah 43:19). This verse reminds me that even though there can be dry spells and times in my life when I am searching for a purpose, God can be preparing the way for me, making streams in the wasteland. We do not know what God has in store for us, but I am choosing to believe it will be incredibly good and worth the wait!