“I feel
better now,” Kaleb told me with weak sunken eyes and a forced smile. In
response, I gently placed the back side of my hand against his flushed cheek.
Immediately, I felt heat radiating from his body.
“So can I go outside and ride my bike today?” he asked with a hopeful gaze as he stood before me in his flannel PJ’s.
“Oh, not yet buddy,” I answered quickly. “Mommy wants you to stay indoors for a while so you can get all the way better, okay?”
He wasn’t too thrilled about it, but somehow, he knew in his six-year-old heart it was pretty useless for him to continue lobbying for an outing in his condition.
Poor little guy woke up sick Sunday.
Ever since, his immune system has taken a major walloping from this nasty virus. Yesterday, Kaleb was even worse off than the day before. But today, thankfully, I see improvements.
Still, my little guy, who is anxious to get back outside to ride his bike, has a bit of recuperation time left before I let him loose. I know his desire to go is very strong, but his body is yet too weak to do what he desires to do at this present time. So I’m holding him back for his own good.
Young or old, sometimes our desire is greater than our ability.
We want to do something right now that we are not ready, able, or fully prepared to handle. So God will hold us back against our will in order to protect, strengthen, and nurture us before releasing us.
When you’re going through a season of being held back, it’s uncomfortable. I know. Everything in you wants to break forth, break loose, and break free! But God knows that loosing you too soon will cause a mental, spiritual, physical, and emotional breakdown instead of a breakthrough, because it will be too much for you to handle at that time.
You see, anything birthed or brought forth too prematurely is unable to survive, so it dies.
God knows this.
He understands timing far better than we ever can or will. So we may as well trust His timetable instead of fighting against it.
When we obey His counsel and submit to His leading we will see the promise of Psalm 1:3 KJV manifest in our lives.
It says, “And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.”
But again, we have to obey God’s leading for that to happen, and sometimes, He says wait.
And we don’t like that.
Often, we are like the eager baby just learning to walk. As they toddle along with wide grins, they assume they can run before gaining their balance. This causes them to stumble and fall.
We, too, can have an overestimation of our ability, aptitude, or readiness. So in order to help us avoid a painful crash, God reaches out, grabs hold to us, and restrains us for our benefit.
He halts our process, not to hinder our progress, but to condition us so we are ready for the ride once the time comes to move forward.
If you are going through a preparation process today, don’t you dare fret or be discouraged. Let God do His work, because without proper conditioning, you will never be in proper condition to do what God has placed you on this earth to do.
Wait on God with a good attitude. He knows what He’s doing. To remind you to wait, I’m stirring Isaiah 40:31 KJV into your cup of inspiration. It says, “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”
When you drink down the contents of your cup, you’ll be reminded that there is a correlation between waiting and strengthening. If God has you in a holding pattern, or a state where you don’t see any progress or change, don’t fear, fret, or be frustrated. He is giving you the strength, lessons, and power you need to soar when the time is right.
Just hold on a little while longer.
Your day of release is coming.
Now let’s pray.
God, thank You for letting me know that being held back isn’t a setback when you are the one telling me to wait. In times when I feel overly anxious or eager to push forward, help me to remember that Your ways, timing, and process is best. And if I wait on You, I will be strengthened, equipped, and empowered to do all You have called me to do when the time is right. Thank You Lord for strengthening me right now as I wait for my green light to go, and for my change to come. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
As always, thanks for reading and until next time... may today's cup of inspiration uplift, encourage, and empower you!
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