TRUST HIS HEART

Have you ever prayed and prayed for something day after day and wondered why God doesn't seem to be answering?  If what we've been crying out to God for is exactly His will then what is the hold up?  Doesn't Matthew 21:22 tell us, "And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive"?  Although we may have faith that God is powerful enough to bring about resolution to our seemingly impossible situation, it sometimes seems as if God's timing is off or maybe He has just forgotten about our prayers?  His schedule just doesn't match up with our agenda.

The days, weeks, months and even years may have passed since we first bowed our trembling knees before the throne of grace and petitioned for God's perfect and holy will in our heartbreaking situation.  Why, oh why does it sometimes seem like it's taking an eternity for God to grant us our simple request? After all, our Father could make all of our pain disappear in seconds with His spoken word so why doesn't He get busy and do so? 

I've been begging my heavenly infinitely wise Father for a resolution for our trial for more than 5 years now.  My heart has continually resided in agony as the pit in my stomach comes and goes like the wind.  I could be perfectly fine one minute and then a wave of grief overtakes my spirit and brings me to tears. There was a time when I cried myself to sleep every night.  In the darkness my tears would soak my pillow as I begged God to change our situation. The process of giving my fears over to God and proceeding to take control once again was a vicious cycle that simply needed to cease.


Over the years the excruciating pain in my gut has lessened slightly and sleep is no longer a problem.  Has God finally answered my cry and put an end to my heart wrenching pain?  My humble answer for those who ask is a soft, "Not completely." What has changed is not my circumstances, for I have finally learned to meditate on the promises of my faithful Father in  I Peter 5:7, which says, "Casting ALL your cares on Him for He cares for you." The constant despair that once plagued me has been replaced with hope and peace.  My God really does care for me and loves me more than I could ever imagine. He also loves those for whom I've been earnestly and fervently praying far more than I would ever be able to.

Because I am a child of the King who possesses only limited knowledge of the entire picture and in my pride I've been elevating myself above my sovereign Savior in believing that I know more than He does.  I couldn't possibly see any good that was resulting from this heartbreak until one day recently when God gave me some extra spiritual insight I had not seen before.

No, God has not miraculously resolved our situation and answered all of my prayers completely.  No, He has not spoken to me in a dream and revealed exactly when it is that He plans on bringing the entire resolution. The peace in my heart returned when I finally realized that sometimes God doesn't change things overnight, there are instances when our answers come in a gradual form. It is crucial for us to be aware of and thankful for those little blessings of answered prayer, even when stretched out over several years. After all, God has a purpose for every single little thing that He allows into our lives.

I have simply come to the realization that God is God and I must trust Him and His plans. "...Who works all things according to the counsel of His own will." (Ephesians 1:11) Although He loves and cares for my broken heart, He must weave together carefully every intricate detail of each situation in His own perfect time to accomplish and He "works all things together for our good and His glorify." (Romans 8:28) During this process of fitting every piece of the puzzle together exactly where it belongs to complete His purposes, our Father desires to receive ultimate praise and honor from All He has done.

Each person involved in this trial must learn exactly what God has planned for us to learn or our trial won't ever be over. So what could our loving Savior possibly desire for us to gain as we continue to wait on our prayers to be answered? He desires for us to experience His awesome attributes and come to the place where we surrender our selfish will and impatient timing to His sovereign will and ways. God tells us in Isaiah 55:8-9, "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," says the Lord. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts."

Sometimes we can't see God's complete plan, so we must learn to Trust His heart. We cannot ever trust in someone else's heart or even our own heart because it our heart is wicked and will lie to us and mislead us. Jeremiah warns us of trusting our own heart in Jeremiah 17:9, "The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked; who can know it?" 

I am sharing with you the touching lyrics to one of my favorite songs. The truths of these words have comforted me and reminded me of the importance of placing my trust in my sovereign Savior even when I don't understand His ways.

 Trust His Heart

All things work for our good
Though sometimes we can't
See how they could
Struggles that break our hearts in two
Sometimes blind us to the truth

Our Father knows what's best for us
His ways are not our own
So when your pathway grows dim
And you just can't see Him,
Remember you're never alone

God is too wise to be mistaken
God is too good to be unkind
So when you don't understand
When don't see His plan
When you can't trace His hand
Trust His Heart

He sees the master plan
He holds the future in His hand,
So don't live as those who have no hope,
All our hope is found in Him.

We see the present clearly
But He sees the first and last
And like a tapestry He's weaving you and me,
To someday be just like Him

We must come to the realization that God's ultimate goal in suffering through our trials is for His children to trust His heart and become more like Jesus Christ.
-He knows exactly what to allow into our lives to accomplish His purposes in us.
-He knows exactly how long we must endure those difficulties to accomplish those purposes.
-He knows exactly when and how to calm the tumultuous storms in our lives.
-He desires for us to trust His heart until every detail has been finished in our hearts.
-He makes it possible to possess the peace that only He can give during our pain.  


We cannot allow ourselves to be paralyzed by our pain.  We must simply "Let Go" of our trial and leave it in the hands of the only One who can change our situation.  I do not understand but God does.  I do not know what the future holds, but God does.  I am not in control, but God is and I trust Him.  Are you willing to let go of the pain that at times disables you and learn what God is trying to teach you in the midst of your heartache?  Are you ready to be comforted by peace when you finally stop waiting for change and place your trust in God's heart?  When we don't see His plan, when we don't understand, when we can't trace His hand, TRUST His heart.