I was walking the other day and reflecting on the last year of my life. One year ago this last week was my final Sunday leading worship at a local church, after 38 years. I have had so many thoughts and emotions over this year. There have been seasons of tremendous growth as I begin to follow the dream God put in my heart. Yet there were also days of questioning where God was. Was He listening? Was He in this? The thought that jumped into my spirit was that there is a gap between the promise and the fulfillment. The gap between promise and fulfillment is often a source of tension and disappointment in various aspects of life, including personal goals, relationships, finances, and overall emotional and spiritual health.
Have you been there? In a season where you knew God had spoken, but what you saw and felt didn’t support it. Too often there is a gap between our expectations and our reality. When reality falls short, it can lead to disillusionment. Many dreams are abandoned in the middle of the gap. We tend to think that all things should work together immediately when we say yes to Him. We interpret the delay, or the silence as a sign that God is not there.
If you are in the midst of a gap, here are a few lessons I have learned in my gap.
*God IS present and is faithful! Lean into the foundation of your faith in Him. We don’t know what faith is until we need it. It’s easy to sing or preach about it. It’s not always easy to hold on to it when you are not seeing or feeling His presence. A foundational belief I have held on to has been that my Father is good, and His plans for me are good. So in the mystery, I choose to trust!
*Obedience to His call doesn’t always mean that things will work out immediately. We know the Word tells us they will work out, but not always in our time frame.
*If the dream or call is big and strong enough, it’s worth fighting for. Don’t give up on the dream that was planted in your heart.
*God will meet us in our time of brokenness and doubt. He’s strong enough to handle our questions even our anger. Yes, there have been those times as well!
*Challenges and obstacles do not mean that you heard wrong. Think Red Sea!
*The value of a safe place is priceless. Life was not meant to be done alone. I’m thankful for the people God has brought into my life in this new season that I can process life with.
*Lastly, when you are unclear what to do, keep walking! Keep doing what you know to do until you hear otherwise.
A few Sundays back, our pastor preached about storms. He made this powerful quote. “The process prepares us for the promise. God prepares us privately before He promotes us publicly.” I read a devotional recently where Habakkuk made his complaint to God. “How long, O Lord, must I call for help”. He loved God but he certainly asked for help to understand the huge gap between what he believed and what he saw all around him. He didn’t stay there. Once the prophet had finished asking his questions, he set out to listen. “I will stand at my watch….I will look to see what he will say to me”. Sometimes, the reason we may not be getting an answer is that we aren’t willing to pause and wait.
I share this for someone specifically who is in the middle of a big gap, maybe like me. Lean into the faith that you know to be true. Do what you know to do. And then wait on the Lord. The fulfillment will come, because He does cause all things to work together for good.
