Are you in a season of waiting?
Do you feel like a dry, withered stick, tired of waiting for the promised blooms to bud again?
A dear friend gave me a beautiful orchid after I lost my mom four years ago. It had not flowered since. I watered, fertilized, tried different lighting, and talked to it to no avail. It had large, vibrant, jade green leaves but no flowers.
“Just toss it and get a new one,” my husband said. I couldn’t bear to give up on it, though. It represented something dear to my heart.
Have you been beating on the doors of heaven but only hearing a resounding, hollow echo? Do the days drag with your burden wearing on you like a ball and chain? Is your soul parched and sending out roots, searching for answers and a small drop of refreshing hope?
Proverbs 13:12a says, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick.”
The enemy wants us to dwell here. The world rushes in at this point and tells us to medicate, work harder, or give up and move on.
However, if we read the second part of Proverbs 13:12, we hear, “a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.”
Last year, my husband bought me a new orchid resplendent with large magenta flowers. Yet I still held on to my old one. The new orchid had slightly different care instructions, and so I followed them for both. To my delight, this year the magenta orchid bloomed again. But the bigger surprise was that my first orchid also bloomed profusely. I was overjoyed!
It wasn’t that the plant couldn’t or didn’t want to bloom—I just didn’t have the right information. New knowledge was needed to obtain the desired result.
Often, I find this is true when I feel hopeless about burdens in my life or struggle in my writing endeavours. I have to wait on the LORD for the right information at the right time. Some days it is a tough battle to keep my eyes on Jesus and not on my concerns. Anxiety batters relentlessly against my attempts to focus on him and his Word. I want to trust the LORD and believe he will provide the answers I need, but it is HARD!
Recently, I woke in the night with my mind awhirl over a decision my husband and I had to make. It affects his health, so it is important. We have been weighing this decision for months, and I prayed for the Lord’s help. I struggle with making decisions.
When we finally decided, we discovered the option wasn’t available in the proper timeframe. Disappointment fell on me like a weighted blanket. Did I mention decisions are hard for me?
What now? I cried out to the Lord. Do we make a new choice, or is there another way for this choice to work?
I prayed and recited memory verses, but I was losing the battle.
Frustrated, I threw off the covers, tiptoed to my office, dragging my anxieties along and opened his Word. Visually reading about the LORD’s character and love toward me strengthened me. I tossed my concerns at his feet, asking for help in the fight. And sisters, he is faithful!
Zephaniah 3:17 has been balm to my heart these days.
“The LORD your God is with you,
He is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
he will quiet you with his love,
he will rejoice over you will singing.”
What amazing promises!
- He is with me.
- He is strong.
- He delights in me.
- His love will quiet my anxious heart.
- He joyously sings about me.
My longings are only fulfilled in Jesus. The LORD is the promised tree of life in Proverbs 13:12. He alone can enter into my innermost being and emotions and soothe them.
Waiting is hard. Decisions are hard. Keeping hope alive is a battle. But when we hold on to the Word of God and seek His presence, we not only endure but thrive in His promises, looking forward to the blossoms to come.
Hope deferred in Christ brings balm for the heart and joyful hope for the future.
Cheering you on, my friends!
Be well!
Patricia