If God had told you all the things you’d have to go through to get to where you are right now, could you have handled it? If He showed you your whole life in advance, you’d probably faint at the plans He’s got in store for you. Joseph discovered during his time in prison that when God gives you a purpose and you commit yourself to it, there’s no ‘opt-out’ tick box anywhere. You’ve just got to trust God and go with it. He knows how long it’ll take and how hard it’ll be. Sometimes that’s why He’s silent. He’s asking you to trust Him. Have you ever prayed about something or asked God for guidance, and not got the immediate answer you were hoping for? God may not answer all your questions – at least not in the way you’d like Him to. But you can be sure He’s working on them. What He’s working on is often bigger than you can understand. The purpose He’s given to you might be interwoven with another person’s, and yours can’t start until theirs is underway. Sometimes, we need to learn something before we can get started on our purpose. God’s timetable isn’t as straightforward as we’d expect. When we wait and we’re patient, we can get the strength to do that because we know He’s at work.
What Now?
Have a look online for Corrie Ten Boom’s tapestry poem. It’s a great reminder that we can’t always understand what God’s working on, or how our purpose fits with His plan, but we can be sure He’s got it all under control.
