Wow. God is so faithful.
Yesterday I overheard two people in a review session discussing Acts 9. This morning I felt God tugging at my heart to read it and was immediately brought to tears because this chapter has been the root of my prayer life. God reassured me in that moment that He is with me, He is for me, He hears my prayers, and He is going to answer them in His way and timing. I have recently found peace in the realization that the answers to my many of my prayers may be that the battle I am trying to fight is not mine to fight, but God’s. Sometimes the answer to your prayer is God asking you to worship and praise Him while you are facing the battle and He is fighting it for you. For me, this is much easier said than done. As a type three enneagram, I am an achiever and find satisfaction in getting tasks done. So letting someone other than myself fight my battles for me is challenging. But that’s just it. These battles were never mine to begin with. The peace found in releasing control of these pressures in life that God asks for back is like no other. It turns all of these worries into worship. This gives God all the more glory because it humbles us to dependency for Him.
The only way for us as children of God to miss out on an answered prayer is to give up too soon and to not live faithfully and purposefully in the NOW. I frequently find myself just going through the motions of this fast paced life and just speeding through day after day. I too often get caught in the trap of just trying to hurry to the next destination or next weekend. However, there is something so peaceful about bringing your life to a halt to encounter God. For me, encountering God is so much more intimate than just having “quiet time” because encountering God means in that very moment He is doing miracles in and through my life. Living in the here and now and thanking Him for each God-given breath in your lungs can be the most restoring remedy for a tired and weary heart.
Recognizing that the same God who created each star not only knows my name but is for me as He creates my story…this alone is enough. He loves me too much to answer my prayers according to my plans. He is a God capable of immeasurably more and is going to provide for in ways that would have scared us away before we were prepared. He has such amazing dreams for our life if we are vulnerable enough to allow Him to love His people through our lives here on Earth. The Holy Spirit works within us to prepare our hearts for what’s yet to come. Consider David. He began as a Shepard. He was then promoted by God to one of the most influential and inspiring men in all of history because he began as a faithful Shepard. God recognized that if he can take such care of sheep, he was also equipped to take of God’s children.
I recently heard a song for the first time called Way Maker and it met me exactly where I am. The lyrics go like this, “Even when I don’t feel it You’re working. You never stop You never stop working.” God is so much more invested in our journey, not our destination. He wants us to chase the One who answers prayers, not the answer we are praying for. Therefore, pray for the situation, not the outcome. Praying for outcome is you telling God what He should do. Praying for the situation puts God in full control; it shows that you know He is sovereign and will provide. He hasn’t failed or made a mistake, and He is not going to start with you.
Thank you, Jesus, for being the champion of my life.
