When Waiting Isn't Worthless



I’m waiting for the new curtain panels I ordered to arrive. The curtains now covering my sliding glass doors are too short. I thought I could make them work somehow since the store didn’t have the length I needed. And because, well, I loved them. 

They are a gorgeous silky pale mocha color. And when I noticed their style name on the package said Paris, I just knew they were the perfect panels to adorn my sliding glass doors. 

Except that they dangle aimlessly a foot and a half above the floor. 

To remedy this, I entertained some crazy DIY decorating ideas of hanging them from hooks tied with ribbons to drop them beneath the rod. 

Or lowering the rod that my brother-in-law drilled in the wall in six {hundred} places. 

Or even adding inches of fabric {that I had yet to buy} to the bottom. 

All because I didn’t want to bother waiting for the longer panels to arrive. 

It doesn’t seem worth it to put up with waiting these days when we can order online and ship overnight. Waiting seems like wasted time. When we can just make things happen ourselves, why tolerate waiting? 



But every time I've waited, I've learned priceless truths in the process. Waiting can unwrap a precious treasure when I relinquish my timeframe and I'm willing to welcome the wait. 

For God’s guidance and grace; his plans and purposes. For a relationship with God that's like nothing else I've experienced.

It’s in the waiting that I allow God to do the work that is so desperately needed in my life. 

But he promises to never leave me to wait alone or without provisions.

God reminds me of his presence through friends who speak his words, messages that arrive in my email box, and acts of kindness that have his fingerprints all over them.

When a friend sat across the table from me at lunch, listening to me talk about my waiting season, her affirming words sunk deep into my heart. “I think you’re exactly where God wants you to be,” she said. “I love watching the work he is doing in your life.”



When an email arrived from an author I admire, replying to a comment I’d left on her blog and she told me she was praying for me, it felt like a love-note from God sent to me with the return address of heaven stamped in the corner.

When a coworker unexpectedly bought my lunch and I looked at her surprised, she said, “You deserve to be treated sometimes.” And I felt as if God were speaking those words to my soul on a day when I most needed to hear them.  

Over the past few months I’ve heard my friends tell me they're not sure about trusting God with their dreams.

A friend says she thinks she's too old to have a family. 

Another friend tells me she's at life’s midpoint, losing her job and she still isn't sure what her talents are and what she wants to do. 

Yet another friend says it's been years since she went to school yet she wants to take a class and write her story.

As I listened to their words, I told my friends about God-sized dreams -- these dreams God whispers to our hearts. 



I told them I'm following some God-sized dreams of my own and it’s never too late for God to work out his purposes. 

I told them God’s plans might look different than they originally thought when they dreamed of their families or careers, but I've found that at a much later date than we think is possible, it's still worth the wait. 

I know this because I'm different than I was when I first started my journey. 

I'm now willing to trust and yield and hope. 

I'll pray and ponder and seek. 

And most of all, I want to commit and give and love. 

It's during my waiting seasons that I've realized that waiting isn’t worthless when it prepares my heart for the purposes God has for my life. 

Waiting isn’t wasted when it produces perseverance and then hope. 

Waiting isn’t unwanted when I’m praying to be made ready.



Whether or not I can ever say that I’ve arrived at my God-sized dreams, I know that I want to never stop experiencing God. 

I think it’s in the waiting that I discover that what I’m waiting for isn’t really my dream. But it's while I'm waiting I realize that I want the nearness of God more than I want any of my dreams. 

For now, I'm still very patiently waiting for my new curtains. The store said they should be here in two weeks. Since my couch is hiding the short ones hanging up now, they’re mostly out of my sight. 

In the meantime, I brought some pillows in from my other rooms to cozy up my couch. 

I thought it would be nice to have a soft, snug spot to sink into while I wait. 




I'm linking up with my friends at Holley Gerth's place at Coffee for your Heart and Sarah Ann at Faith Along the Way. Will you join me?







Comments

  1. Oh yes, Valerie ... the most beautiful miracles, the most compelling invitations often happen within those waiting room spaces ...

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    1. Thank you Linda . . . the miracles and invitations that come from waiting -- they are truly beautiful!

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  2. May we always wait on the Lord and rely on His strength and rest in His love. Lovely reminders.

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  3. This was simply beautiful and so is your space, this is my favorite line, "I think it’s in the waiting that I discover that what I’m waiting for isn’t really my dream. But it's while I'm waiting I realize that I want the nearness of God more than I want any of my dreams. "
    wow. waiting is really a time for relationships you know? when we wait we listen long and talk deep and sit still long enough to know each other and Him. beautiful words, Valerie

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    1. Yes … listening long to know God better . .. love that! Thank you for reading!

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  4. Another beautiful and timely post!

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    1. Tami,
      Thank you for being here and sharing your encouragement!

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  5. Of course, this is my favorite part! "When a coworker unexpectedly bought my lunch and I looked at her surprised, she said, “You deserve to be treated sometimes.” And I felt as if God were speaking those words to my soul on a day when I most needed to hear them."

    Another great post my friend!

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    1. You didn't realize you were delivering God's message, did you!? So grateful for you!

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  6. LOVE your post! Love your point that God has us right where He wants us - even in the wait. Something I try to remind myself of when I'm frustrated - that I'm in this place right now for a some reason. I just need to be faithful to this time and place and trust that God will move me on when He's ready.

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    1. Kathryn,
      It's a hard place to be but so valuable, awaiting God's direction. Praying for you in the wait!

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  7. YES!!! I am not patient in the waiting process although God loves to make me wait, as He refines me and molds me to mirror His character a little more. What a beautiful reminder that once again was exactly what I needed to hear! Thanks for linking to the Saturday Soiree Blog Party!

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    Replies
    1. Sarah Ann,
      Love linking up at your blog party! Thanks for hosting!

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