If there is anything that the Lord is teaching me in this season, it’s the value of patience.
When I first walked into my relationship with the Lord, I knew that there was much healing that I needed to do. My idea of identity, relationships, love, community, and insecurity were just a few aspects of my life that the Lord allowed me to recognize a crucial need of healing in within myself at the time. Recently, I’ve come to realize that this world of instantaneous gratification that we live in has left many of us with a lack of patience, including myself. In my prayer time, when talking to the Lord, if I didn’t get an instant response, I began feeling frustration and doubt in what He was doing. I was praying over stressors and worries that I had in regards to school, graduation, and work… things that simply could not be answered immediately. One day, I was praying, and all I heard back was a whisper from the Lord telling me to “wait.”
It was only one word, only one syllable, but it was a very clear instruction. At the time, I was unsure of what this instruction meant, but I was certain that I wanted to walk in obedience, so I did. Rather than praying for answers, I began praying for patience. Rather than allowing myself to become consumed in the desire to know all of the answers now, I submitted and surrendered that desire to the Lord. I leaned into the unknown, knowing that He would bring all things to light in His perfect timing. In this process, I have learned that the Lord is healing something else in me that I didn’t even recognize needed to be healed. He is healing the need I had for instant gratification, and He is teaching me what a virtue that patience is. He is teaching me how much I missed and overlook when I was only seeking destination. He is teaching me that just because He isn’t answering now, doesn’t mean that He has forgotten about me.
I’m still not exactly sure where the Lord is taking me, and I still don’t know the answers for some of the things that I have been praying over. However, I do see the beauty in the journey, and I am not nearly as anxious for my destination. I am thankful for this race that He has called me to run. I can’t wait to see how the Lord will move in this concept as I take on Costa Rica with my fellow racers, because I know that He is equipping all of us to be vessels for His glory alone!
