God's Why for Our Waiting

And so here we are, another holiday season. Another season of putting on a brave face—smiling, though you may be lonely. Laughing, though you may ache. Go-go-going, though you may feel weary and worn, at the end of your rope.

Rejoicing and glorifying the birth of our Savior, though you may also be asking… “Why?”

Why, Lord, is this happening to me? Why does it have to be so hard? Why was I laid off? Why didn’t he stay? Why did she get sick? Why, oh God, have my dreams fallen to pieces? Why me?

About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”). Matthew 27:46

This time of year sure has a way of making people reflect, doesn’t it? Reflecting on your joys, your sorrows… what you’ve gained, and what you’ve lost. The holiday season marks the end of one year, only to be replaced by another. A fresh start. An escape. A new year in queue, optimistically ready to sweep last year’s problems under the rug. 

But, even if the problems no longer linger, the anguish can. 

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

All this reflection talk has me thinking about that old saying: “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.” (I promise I’m going somewhere with this—bear with me!)

In my line of work, we teach people to fish. (Well, figuratively.) That is to say, we do not only provide shelter, meals and resources to those in need—but we aspire also to teach, so to speak. We dig deeper, examining and addressing the root causes of homelessness, hunger and addiction, which often stem from crises like domestic abuse, poverty, death of spouse, lack of education, trauma... The list goes go on and on.

So, what do our counselors and case workers do? They ask the hard questions. They dig deep. By examining root causes, we can then find and teach root solutions to not only bring healing to broken souls, but to provide hope that will last well beyond the next trip around the sun. 

And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19

Mind you, there’s nothing wrong with temporary solutions: a place to crash for the night, a hot meal, fresh clothes on your back. These relatively quick comforts are definitely important—and can often open the door to recovery for someone desperate to escape from life on the streets. But they don’t necessarily teach a person how to lead a healthy and productive life, long-term. 

I have seen their ways, but I will heal them; I will guide them and restore comfort to Israel’s mourners, creating praise on their lips. Peace, peace, to those far and near,” says the Lord. “And I will heal them.” Isaiah 57:18-19

Only by digging deep and uprooting the real cause of one’s problems can a new seed of hope be planted in its place—a seed that, through great care and counsel, can be consistently welcomed, encouraged, and cultivated. A seed that, in our experience, will flower only through the living water of Jesus Christ.

It is a seed of faith—one of purpose, love, and self-worth in the eyes of the Lord.

“Ok, Megan,” you may be thinking, “that’s all fine and dandy. But what do tough holiday seasons and long-term recovery programs have to do with anything?”

Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.” John 13:7

Last spring, I was having a hard time maintaining a healthy work-life balance. And it was all my own doing. See, without anything calling me home at 5pm—no family, no dog—it was all too easy for me to stay at work and keep chipping away at my to-do list, deep into the night. It got so bad that, at one point, I found myself wishing I had a husband not for the companionship and love (aka, my normal reasons), but to obligate me to come home.

Yikes, I remember thinking. That’s not the right reason to want a husband.

(Now, if my life were a Hallmark movie, this is where I’d be put on sabbatical and sent on an African safari retreat led by a snarky yet ruggedly handsome tour guide. Or, I’d use my PTO to help manage the family’s countryside inn alongside the stubborn hired hand who thinks I’m just another big shot city kid, here one day and gone the next… until we go to the town’s Christmas ball together and bond over our shared childhood dreams. Oh, and he’s a glass-blower and a volunteer firefighter. We also milk a cow together at some point.)

It’s not like this realization meant that I’d suddenly abandoned my desire for companionship and love. Of course I want marriage for its opportunities of love, joy, family, and shared glorification of God and all His goodness. It was just a fleeting thought, really.

But that small moment, as fleeting as it was, prompted me to do some major soul surgery: to examine my heart, uproot my self-centered thinking and to-do list obsession, and refocus on God’s purpose and design for marriage, among other things. 

The Lord foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples. But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. Psalm 33:10-11

All these years, I’ve wanted the husband. And, all these years, maybe you’ve wanted the kids, the dream job, the cute house, the perfect body, the self-confidence… or all of the above. But when was the last time you asked yourself why you want any of these things? I mean, really, truly…. Why, at your very core, do you yearn for these things—and why are you so confident that life will be better once you have them?

When was the last time you examined the root causes of your pains and your longings? When was the last time you tangibly wondered what God might be doing during this season of waiting? How long have you been trying to convince yourself of surface level, short-term, worldly solutions—which, incidentally, are no solutions at all when they are not rooted in the love and grace and glory of the Savior?

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” John 11:25-26

Dear Christian sisters, when you think about your problems and envision possible solutions, is your rationale bringing you closer to Christ, or is it pushing you away from Him? Are you dwelling on your problems, or are you dwelling in His promises? Are you allowing these fleeting moments of doubt to take root in your soul, skewing your logic and poisoning your faith—or are you fleeing to Christ in these moments, desperately seeking His mercy and imploring Him to “take my hand, precious Lord, and lead me on” to heaven?

Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers. Psalm 1:1-3

My dear friends, God has not forgotten you. He knows your pains, your heartaches, and your unfulfilled desires. And, even when you falter with doubt, whether for a fleeting moment or for fifty years straight, He still offers an eternal, sin-conquering, life-redeeming solution:

That perfect little baby Jesus, lying in a humble manger—who grew up to teach and love and save and hang from a cross. For us. 

I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands. Isaiah 49:15-16

Oh, precious daughters of the King. When moments pass but anguish lingers, know that God is with you, and He is for you. He’s digging deep—using this time not only to meet your earthly needs, but your heavenly ones, too. 

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9

Things will go wrong this side of heaven, and in our sinful human conditions we may often find ourselves wanting—but it’s not because God is slacking on the job. Our good, good Father is always at work.

When life throws us curveballs and we reach for those quick remedies and low-hanging fruit, and when we realize they make no difference and only leave us feeling emptier than before… My friends, it is in these moments that God is using our trials to wean us off of the world and back into His loving, forgiving, forever embrace. 

In waiting, then, God teaches us—drawing our gaze to the cross, and inviting us ever closer to His everlasting solution of eternal life in heaven.

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:1-2

And so here we are, another holiday season. The end of one year, ready to be replaced by another. “New Year, new me”—right? 

But the New Year is not a do-over. It is not a forget-me-now. It’s not some surefire way or excuse to sweep problems and hurts and empty longings under the rug. January 1st may bring a New Year, but only Christ can bring new life and the freedom of salvation. 

The New Year will surely be full of blessings and challenges, and things that make us wait and wonder. Yet, even in that waiting should we reflect in the wonder and awe and faith and joy and majesty of our born King. For behind our waiting is God’s glorious why: His heavenly purpose, His almighty plan, and His steadfast love for your life—bought with the precious blood of Jesus, our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace.

Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Revelation 21:1-4