WILL WE WAIT LONG ENOUGH FOR HIM TO CLARIFY?

I'm writing for Five Minute Friday and today's prompt word is CLARIFY. 

I desperately need God to clarify some things for me at the moment, and He is, slowly, but surely.

They are big issues, and quite separate from each other, in some ways. 

One is how and where the girls and I are going to live in six weeks' time.     We have to move out of our rental and the plan was to move into our own home, but we can't because the financial separation has been stalled, yet again, so we have to find another rental.  

That disappointment has been huge and we've had a rather stressful few weeks coming to terms with it.   

But God has a plan.   I'm not sure what it is yet, and I guess I don't need to know the whole plan right now, but I do need soonish to know the plan for where and how we're living in six weeks' time.  Apparently, He had a plan before I had a brain to overthink it, so there's that.   And when I reminded Him that we're running out of time, He reminded me that He created time.  So there's that.  

He is not dismissing our needs.  Not at all. He's just making it obvious that there are needs I haven't recognised yet, and future needs He wants to meet with a better plan.    So I wait, somewhat anxiously, but with expectation, even as my girls ask me endless questions about how and where and when and why.    It's a huge learning curve for them but I want them to learn about the God who comes through for us.  

The other things I need Him to clarify are relational issues - long standing ones - played out in old relationships and relatively new relationships.    These are long-standing relational defaults that threaten to sabotage current relationships (mine), and the girls' relationships with others.    So I need Him to clarify how the defaults work (and understanding why would be helpful), how to get out of the defaults and stay out of them, how to put healthy boundaries on things and stand on those boundaries, how to love people well within those healthy boundaries, how to help my children navigate these issues well so they don't end up with the same major strongholds in their lives.   

How does God clarify stuff like this for us?  Like, practically, how does that work, that clarification?  

I've had so many people, mostly well-meaning, offer me all sorts of wisdom, advice, opinions, suggestions, observations and even prophetic words over the last several months about the how, when, where, why and what in our current issues.

And while I appreciate them all, I am left confused and still with no solid answers as to how to move forward.    What we thought was the plan, that we got all excited about, as did others, is no longer viable, so I'm struggling, the girls are struggling, and we need answers.  

I need the Lord to clarify what HIS plan is.   And maybe it's taken this major speed bump for me to get serious enough to get quiet enough for long enough to hear HIS answers, not what I want to hear.   

Does God clarify things for us, if we do that  - if we stop and dig in and listen?  

He absolutely does.  He's done it before and He'll do it again.  

It's about learning to listen to His voice.  He promises in many places in the Word to speak to us individually, to direct, guide, show, teach, instruct and help, AS we acknowledge Him in all our ways.

And I have found Him to be very faithful at doing that, sometimes even when I'd rather He didn't.    Sometimes, He's not so concerned about solving our huge problem but rather going deeper, showing us a new aspect of His character that easy answers would prevent.   

Many years ago, He taught me about the value and necessity of waiting with real expectation (aka faith) and to wait long enough to get an answer from Him.  I've learnt that He DOES want to answer us, with real, practical, solid, sustainable, life-giving answers if we will just press in.     

He gave me a very practical example of that and it's what I often refer back to when I doubt that He's listening or going to offer solutions.  

It was a picture explanation of these words of Jesus, albeit a limited understanding of them.  

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.  Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?    Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent?  If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!"   Matt 7:7-11

So, suppose you go to a friend's house for a coffee.   You go there often, and  have coffee with this friend.   She knows what kind of coffee you like and how you like it, and what you like to eat with it.  

And even when she's busy, she'll always make time to stop and have a coffee with you.   

One day, you go there for coffee and she seems very distracted.   You wait for over an hour and still no coffee appears.  In fact, she seems to have disappeared altogether, after saying 'I'll be back in a minute'.  

What do you do?   

Do you get all offended because she hasn't made you a coffee?   

Do you make it yourself, even though some of the ingredients seem to be missing?   

Do you get up and leave and decide you're never coming back?   

What you probably would do is dig into her past faithfulness and just wait it out, knowing that she will eventually resurface and make you a coffee and perhaps explain why it's taken so long.

God challenged me with that story, and with a new understanding of those verses.   

When the answer isn't immediate, we need to remind ourselves of His previous faithfulness and just plain old wait till He answers.   We need to wait with the same expectation that we would entrust to a faithful friend who always makes us coffee.    We often don't wait long enough, get quiet long enough, get still long enough.  We're tempted to fix, solve, work it out, start looking for Plan B, C, D, E or F.

How often do we miss what He wants and what He wanted to give us, because we don't  wait and press in?   We don't ask (and keep on asking), seek (and keep on seeking), knock (and keep on knocking).    

It's a three-step process that requires more than a shallow faith.   It requires trust in the already-proven character of God, in the Word of God, in the ability of God, in the willingness of God - to answer us.  

And so, I will wait on Him to clarify what I need Him to clarify.    In fact, I'm going away alone for a couple of days to do just that.   And as for what He doesn't show me in the near future, I will surrender the right to understand so I can hang onto peace.  

My soul, wait silently for God alone,

For my expectation is from Him.

He only is my rock and my salvation;

He is my defense;

I shall not be moved.  Ps 62:5,6 

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

And lean not on your own understanding;

In all your ways acknowledge Him,

And He shall direct your paths.  Prov 3:5,6

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;  and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.  Phil 4:6,7

Yeah, I will wait for You, I will wait for You

On Your word I will rely

And I will wait for You, surely wait for You

'Til my soul is satisfied

So put Your hope in God alone

Take courage in His power to save

Completely and forever won

By Christ emerging from the grave