I used to think I knew what was best for me. After all, who knows me better than me? I reasoned. Falling flat on my face with things ending up in a mess more than a few times taught me that God knows better than me, that’s who.
After a few tearful endings marked the conclusion of my attempts to carry out my best laid plans, the truth began sinking in: I wasn’t in control. No amount of savvy maneuvering would bring me the results I wanted to see. I had to surrender to God’s will and completely trust His timing.
His ways are not my ways and His thoughts aren’t either. In fact, God’s methods sometimes baffle me. They leave me scratching my head and wondering, What is God up to? Why did He choose to go this way? Why hasn’t He answered my prayers yet? When will He act? Wouldn't it have been better if _________________ ? You could complete the previous sentence by plugging in your own thoughts.
Each of us has been in a situation (actually several!) where we didn't quite get the why, when, where, or how surrounding God's methods of bringing His will to pass in our lives. In many situations, the clarity we so desperately desired didn't come right away, if ever. And you know what? You have to be okay with that. Though you will never fully understand His ways—because they are higher than ours—you must choose to trust God's heart, His will, and His perfect plan for your life.
Just know some how, some way, God will come through for you. Be confident of this!
When Jesus healed the man with the withered hand in Mark 3:1-6, He simply told the afflicted man, “Stretch out your hand.” In verse 5, the Bible says, “He stretched it out, and his hand was restored.”Here's something I want you to pay attention to: he had to stretch out his hand in faith, because even after Jesus spoke, his hand was still shriveled up. There was no visible change until he stretched it out.
In Hebrew, that word “withered” is xéros, which means dry. It is the same word for dry land. In this context, however, it denotes one of the members of the body being deprived of its natural juices, leaving it shrunken, wasted and withered. For so long, there was no blood flowing to this man’s hand. It was dry and deprived of what it needed to thrive. But when he stretched out that hand in faith at the Lord's command, restoration took the place of deprivation.
God showed up in that man's situation and turned everything around for Him. He's going to do the same thing for you, even though it may not look like it right now. Friend, wherever your “xéros,” or dry place may be, God will restore it. No matter how long you have been deprived of what you need, change is coming your way. Trust Him. Rest on His promises and stand on His word.
Through your trials, troubles and difficult circumstances, God is up to something.
God has been testing your faith. He wants you to know He WILL come through. You have no need to worry.
Do you remember when God told Moses to stretch out his rod over the Red Sea in Exodus 14:26-27? Well, the children of Israel had an expansive body of water in front of them and Pharaoh and his army chasing them from behind. It didn't look good. It seemed that they were trapped. But Moses obeyed God. He stretched out his rod and that’s when God stretched out His hand, and parted the Red Sea.
Moses, just like the man with the withered hand, was required to act in faith.
Think about Genesis 22:10. After God commanded Abraham to offer up his only son Isaac as a sacrifice, the Bible says Abraham stretched out his hand to slay Isaac. As agonizing as this must have been, Abraham still stretched out his hand and his faith. At that moment, the angel of the Lord called out to Abraham from heaven and revealed that there was a ram caught in the thicket that would be used for the sacrifice instead.
Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah-jireh, which means, The Lord Will Provide.
Not only did God provide, but in verses 17-18, He pronounced a blessing over Abraham's life. The Lord told him, "That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice."
Listen, the same God who provided for Abraham and blessed Him, is alive and at work in your life today. God is going to come through for you in an amazing way. Just wait on Him. You will see firsthand that God is still Jehovah-jireh. He continues to provide daily. He still makes ways. He still heals. He still restores. He still sets free!
Have faith. Rebuke limited thinking. Say no to fear. Refuse to worry. Use the power of God's word to overpower the sound of those negative voices shouting in your ear telling you that you'll never make it, and that this won't work.
You must walk by faith and not by sight, being assured of this: God's way and His timing is best and He will no doubt come through for you.
To encourage you as you wait, I’m stirring 1 Peter 5:10 NIV into your cup of inspiration, which says, “And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.”
As you drink down the contents of your cup, put your faith in the Lord. Know that He is faithful to deliver. Expect Him to do the miraculous in your life.
You may not know how He'll do it, but know that He will.
Now let’s pray.
God, I trust You, though I don't see, know or understand what You're doing. I know You love me and You have a perfect plan for me. While I wait, help me not to give into worry or fear, but to trust that, just as You did in Bible days, You will show up in my life and do what no other power can! Thank You in advance. In Jesus' name, Amen.
As always, thanks for reading and until next time... may today's cup of inspiration uplift, encourage, and empower you!
If you need prayer, don't hesitate to request it. I would be honored to stand in faith with you. I know that prayer works. CLICK HERE to learn how to submit your prayer request.
