Be Still: Learning to Wait While God WorksSample

I once heard someone say, “I pray for God to close the right doors, and for God to open the right doors.” As soon as I heard that, it hit me hard. How many times have I decided I knew which doors needed to be closed and which doors needed to be opened?

When we are still and we know that God is God, we can then trust Him, let go of our own ways, and have faith in His plan, believing that He works at exactly the right time. We must trust Him because there’s a vast difference between what we know and what God knows.

As I look back at my husband's addiction and our recovery—yes, “our” recovery, both mine and his—I can see God’s hand at work: from the way He aligned our careers with His plan to the ways that my husband was able to seek treatment, to God answering my long-standing prayer to help other loved ones of addicts with my new career. God’s been at work through all of it

Do I wish my husband would have gotten sober a lot sooner? Yes. Do I ever look back and think, “What if?” Yes!

But then I have to follow that train of thought to its conclusion: “What if I had done this or that sooner? Would I be where I am today, in a career I love, helping other loved ones of addicts find peace and healing? Would my husband be at home today, sober, with all three of our kids?”

We can’t look back and dwell on the 'would’ve', 'could’ve', 'should’ve'. We must give ourselves grace and forgiveness, then look only at today. We must have faith that God has us today, tomorrow, and into the future.

God hears our cries. He is eager to listen, comfort, and answer our prayers

Yes, the waiting is hard. It’s especially difficult when we feel stuck in our own lives or when we see our loved ones on a destructive path.

But waiting is often part of being still. And when we practice that stillness, when we stop to worship, to read the scriptures, to pray, and to meditate, then we renew our confidence in Jesus to come through when we need it most.

Or as we read in a different psalm (Psalm 130), when we wait for the Lord, we can hope in His promise. “I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, And in His word I do hope.”

Journal time! Write down some of your “What ifs”. Now take them to the Lord in prayer and ask Him to show you how He’s been present in every part of your life, even the ones you wish were different. Write down what you learn and spend some time today considering it.