Sunday, January 31, 2010

He Gives Back

There was a time in my life not too long ago that I was given something that I had been waiting a long time for. It was the man that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. He seemed like the right person for me. I was rushing the relationship though and in the midst of it all, I felt I needed to give him up. It was the hardest thing ever. It was as if my dream was shattered. Like he had been taken from me. I was trying to possess something that was not intended for me to possess yet. It was not the right time.

'The Lord gives and the Lord takes away’ (Job 1:21). This was where Job's thinking was. The Lord gives, the Lord takes away, and the Lord gives back was the experience of Abraham (Gen.22). I am with Abraham on this one. I believe God is a giver. He gives back every single time.

Now I am waiting once again. I am standing in faith that the Lord is going to give back and it is going to be better than before. Is it a battle to stand strong and be patient? Yes. I am reminded though that the battle belongs to the Lord. It is not mine to fight for. Something I am to do is rest and wait on Him. In my resting, I am trusting. In my waiting, I am being strengthened.

Psalm 27:14
"Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord!"

Isaiah 40:31
"But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint."

In the waiting time, I want to learn to possess that which is intended for me to have. I do not desire to be one who holds onto something that is not meant for me to possess. There is an allotment for me. For you it may be to have a child, to own a home, or fulfill a professional goal. My land, the land that God has promised to me and spoken to me about for over 10 years now, is my husband.

We are stewards now of the earthly property assigned to us. I am excited to learn more about this in the weeks to come as Beth continues to teach us about our Inheritance as an heiress of God.

2 comments:

The TNLN Blog said...

Shawna this is so raw and real, thank you! He will perfect that which concerns us (Ps138:8). Praise the Lord!









9

Matthew Andrews said...

(copy and pasted from response on FB at Terrel's request)

Remember Abraham, he waited until he was 100 before the 'son of promise' came. He did rush it at 90, and Ishmael was born from it. However, God made it clear this wasn't acceptable and that Ishmael wasn't the one, but it would be by his wife Sarai (and here she is renamed Sarah after laughing at the notion).

The really cool thing about all this, even though Abraham lost Ishmael, whom he loved dearly, God promised Ishmael would still be blessed and become a great nation anyways because he was in fact Abraham's child, even if not the 'son of promise'.

Genesis 17:15-21 (where God says tells Abraham Ishmael wasn't the one, but would bless him anyways)

Genesis 21:8-20 (where Ishmael and his mother are sent away and God provides for them even in the desert of hopelessness.)