A story of hope if you’re struggling with God’s timing

Do you hate the waiting game? So did my daughter. God’s timing is perfect, but it doesn’t always feel that way. Here’s hope and encouragement if you’re wrestling with the clock.

{Note: Although the message in this post is TIMELESS, the events described happened over two years ago. For the latest on how this daughter is seeking God’s timing, see Encouraging your single daughter: 10 do’s and don’ts.}

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I watched her post on her shiny new blog about being “in between” as the year came to a close. She went on to post, “My Plan Has Ended,” acknowledging that she had come to the end of the course we charted for her undergraduate degree. My oldest daughter was waiting expectantly to see what God had next – a little fearful of the unknown, but full of faith.

But with each passing week, her efforts to find a job and get started with “real” life seemed fruitless. She struggled against the seeming silence of the God whom she believed would guide her through each step.

I would know when her Pinterest feed was full of quotes like …

“Until God opens the next door, I’m going to praise Him in the hallway.”
“Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.”
“Don’t mistake God’s patience for His absence. His timing is perfect and His presence is constant.”

… that she was preaching to herself instead of listening to herself. Resolutely proclaiming what she knew had to be true.

But it was hard. She finally broke down and let it all spill in a post titled, “Facing the Unknown,” where she made these statements:

[blockquote type=”center”]”I’ll be honest, it is frustrating not knowing the next step and not being able to plan.
That’s just the plain and simple truth.
I know what the Bible says about “not worrying about tomorrow” and trusting in God’s timing.
I get those good-intention ‘speeches’ all the time.
I hate the ‘waiting’ game. There. I said it. It is the worst game ever invented. Not fun. At. All.
If I could possess a superpower, it would be the ability to travel through time. Then I could avoid all the worrying about the future because I would already know.”
[/blockquote]

Um, yes. That reference to those “good-intention speeches” – that would be me. Mom, here.
And really, I didn’t give them that often. I learned early on they weren’t helping that much and I’d save them for when I thought her own internal sermon was waning. Otherwise, I “just” prayed.

How I Prayed for My Daughter

I didn’t exactly pray for what she was asking for, however.

She was in the middle of the drama, but I had a prime box seat with a much different perspective, and I had paid its ticket price with my own experience of waiting. So what did I pray for?

First, I told God “thank you” for the season of rest.

After graduating high school early, this child finished her undergraduate degree ahead of schedule and was starting her graduate work at age 19. We had encouraged her to take it slowly, but she went straight into applying for “big girl” jobs, believing she needed a new plan.

But I knew the child needed a break.
As I watched things NOT fall into place for her, I had my suspicions about what God was doing.
I had one of those rare opportunities to speak truth and I told her:

“Scripture says of some sheep, ‘He makes me lie down in green pastures.’
Honey, you are that kind of sheep. You had to be made to lie down.”

Next, I told God “thank you” for what I could see He was teaching her – lessons I never could.

Mostly because she took after me so much.
She is a planner who always had a plan. And she usually had it right.
When she was only four, she was correcting me if I didn’t put the dishes up in the “right” place.
God was teaching her to lean into Him, not lean on herself.
It was painful to watch her struggle, but I knew personally that it would be a precious lesson she would never forget.

And finally, I asked Him to go with her through each step, before each interview, empowering her to do her best.

Don’t let her self-esteem suffer, Lord. Help her to do absolutely everything she can do, and come away knowing she left it all on the table. Encourage her, Lord. And provide – in your perfect timing, dear Jesus.

God’s Timing is Perfect

She began the last week of March with a blog post “The Start of Something New.”
She wrote about her frustrations using the past tense and proclaimed the following as the present tense:

[blockquote type=”center”]”I have had to relinquish my illusion of control. My crutches have been removed and I have been “forced” to pray over Scripture, rely on the Lord, and trust Him for the next step, often with my prayers mirroring that of Grant Taylor in Facing the Giants, “Lord give me somethin’, show me somethin.”
And then just like in the movie, a Mr. Bridges-like friend or family member lovingly reminds me of this, “Until the Lord moves you, you’re to bloom right where you’re planted.”
With spring almost here to stay, it’s perfect planting season and I’m going to prepare my fields for the rain.
My situation remains the same.
But I have refocused my perspective and I know the rain is coming and I trust in my faithful Lord and will continue to use this time of waiting to do and accomplish that which I can’t when working full-time.
And just as spring brings new life and fresh starts, I’m hoping this is the start of something new…”[/blockquote]

Within a week after she wrote that last post, we received a text from her:  “I got the job!” We knew there were two that were still a possibility, so those of us on that chain had to ask, “Which one?”

Within two hours of the first text, we received another:
“OH.MY.WORD.” (btw, not a good text to send your parents)
That text was followed with this explanation: She had just received a call from the second job. It was also an offer of employment.

I do not believe in coincidences. The two offers within two hours were also part of the lesson God had prepared for her. His timing is perfect.

Overwhelmed by the Deluge

I had watched from my box seat for many months and believed that God would provide, despite her discouragement.
But I never expected Him to show off with such an overt, overwhelming, unmistakable display of spring.

Oh, me of little faith. Nothing is impossible for my God.

It was eye-opening for my own journey.
As I watched her squirm — uncomfortable with the unknown and questioning the seeming silence — it was as if I was looking into a mirror.
I have been there more times than I care to admit.

How often I have begged God to speed up His timing — to give me something different than what I had at the time. And when it didn’t  turn out like I envisioned, I  questioned if He was just leaving me in the dark.

Her story reminds me that God still works even when we question His plan and wonder if He’s still there.
He doesn’t give in and give us what we want if it isn’t what we need.
He allows us to hate the waiting game, and not punish us by withholding an answer.

He’s ok with the fact that we may not fully appreciate the winter.
And when it is time for spring – when we have prepared our fields for rain – He can show off with a deluge that will leave us breathless and proclaiming, “God, I am overwhelmed.”

God is good. All the time.
All the time. Our God is GOOD.
And God’s timing is PERFECT.

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God’s timing is perfect!
This powerful list of articles includes
biblically-based guidance for you in seeking God’s will and trusting His timing.

From our Family Bookshelf:

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Our family has read the following books during our times of searching for God’s will and timing.
These are still on our shelves (or Kindle) today. They’re too good to let go.

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Making Life & Words Count!

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