Trusting in God's timing with obedience is an example or testament to my increase and growth in faith in God. It is also a testament to the fact that believing and trusting God takes tenacity.
Therefore, trusting in God is believing for His promises to come to pass before the promise has manifested or before the restoration has been completed. It is believing in the unseen and knowing it will come to pass.
It is having faith like a child with a kind of undaunted faith that is not wavered by the waves of life but is steadfast in the love of God. In simplicity, it is believing God for the impossible when things look almost impossible and completely absurd.
This is where the glory of God and His spoken promises are the most surprising!
Because God takes the impossible and makes it possible. Just like how He takes our dirty rags of sins and makes us pure as white as snow by redeeming us through the blood He spilled on the cross.
Now let me clarify even though God does the impossible by flipping things and by flipping situations, does not mean we will not go through hard times or trials because we will.
However, we will come out on the other side refined by the fire. We will not be burned by the fire because God will be with us.
The reason I share this is that as I was feeling boughed down by not being inspired to have a topic this week for the blog. The Holy Spirit kept leading me in the direction of having a more child-like faith when it comes to writing.
For instance this past week I kept remembering this time when I was younger I would turn on music dance around and then I would get up on the bed and jump on it as most other kids would. Only I had my favorite country music on with Shania Twain in the background.
Or when in college I would play volleyball with friends for fun to jump to block the ball to help my team win.
And how there would be no care in the world or what the consequences would be if mom or dad saw me jumping. It was just fun to freely jump and see the world as full of opportunities. Instead of seeing things through the eyes of an adult with a cynical point of view.
Just because I do not always have to have this inspiring moment to write. What I need is more time focusing on Jesus and spending time in His presence and more time leaning into the leading of the Holy Spirit to write what God wants me to share. Not what I feel inspired to always write.
For example, what God wants me to share may not always line up with what I think is inspiring. This is why I need to back up and align myself with Him, not the other way around.
Aligning myself with what God wants me to continue to write and share is humbling myself before God by remembering who is the greatest in the kingdom of God. But also remembering how to not cause others to stumble by aligning the words that I speak and write with scripture, to the best of my human ability.
Because I will fall short and mess up at times with what I speak or write. Yet, I am so thankful for God's grace that covers me when I do mess up or fail He is right there to catch me.
"At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea."(Matthew 18:1-6ESV).
In looking back at my childhood and seeing the childlike faith that I had. It was the wonder and awe that I looked at God differently than I do now as an adult. Some of the awe has faded and is not as burning bright. Yet, I want it to be that burning bright fire that is shining bright to lead others to Christ.
Compared to the cynical mundane way we as adults can look at life. Lately, I have been pouring my heart out to God to bring back that fire by refining my outlook on life.
How we look at life reflects how faith shapes our view of God. With childlike faith, we view God as infinitely wondrous and bigger than anything. Whereas, as life goes on we grow up and lose sight of all the wondrous things God does daily.
This is where trusting God and believing He can do the impossible by waiting expectedly for God to move is where tenacity comes in exactly. And where our faith increases because we have to believe in what is coming not what has already been or happened before.
The childlike faith is what gets us to the next jumping point if you know what I mean. The point is having the childlike faith keeps our focus on Jesus, not on the circumstances that can change our minds or views on things to see life or circumstances from that more cynical perspective.
It also involves not being afraid to ask questions. See children are not afraid to ask questions to find the right answers and the truth.
This is important we need to go before God and ask questions to find the truth even if we do not get all the details. Because we know God is trustworthy and always on time even when it does not seem like it.
What I am truly getting at is God is full of wonder. And we can truly trust Him with all of our hearts even the dark places that we do not want anyone else to see or know about. God is willing to go to the deep dark places to bring us back to Him.
We just need to be willing to receive the hand He reaches out to us. Also, we need to be willing to be silly and jump on the bed once and while a child does. Like we all have done in the past.
So here is a reminder:
undaunted childlike faith is a blessing
God is trustworthy even if we do not see what He is doing
God's timing is perfect even if we do not see the results
It is okay to give yourself some grace and jump on the bed as you did as a child or play volleyball with friends!
References:
English Standard Version Study Bible (2008) Crossway Publishing, Wheaton ILL,
Picture by: wix.com
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