“Joseph saw what seemed to contradict God’s promise as an opportunity to demonstrate faith- not a reason to doubt or abandon it.”- Wayne Stiles
Dr. Wayne Stiles continues Chapter 6 of Waiting on God by empathizing that there will be days in life where you truly believe you can’t hold out. As the author poignantly states, “The weight of disappointment feels far heavier and more real than the promise of God that lies beyond it.”
With the exception of an abusive situation, Dr. Stiles advises, take it one day at a time. Then, one day you’ll wake up and realize you’ve endured a difficult situation for months or years. While others scoff and call your faith stance crazy or a waste of life, God calls it perseverance.
Standing up to a heavy load glorifies God. In addition, Dr. Stiles reminds us, the victorious Christian life presupposes a battle:
“The victory in the Christian life comes as a victory of choice in the midst of a life that suffers. The quality of life rests in our attitude, not in our circumstances. To realize something is to consider it to be real. And when you realize endurance finds favor with God, it can bring peace and joy to any troubled situation.”
Therefore, we glorify God just as much through our waiting for Him as by serving Him in a fulfilling vocation or ministry. These situations provide a marvelous opportunity to demonstrate faith.
Waiting on God keeps us humble. Over the passing of time, we come to understand that it’s all about God. In conclusion, Wayne states that we find our fulfillment in God’s glory:
“When we choose to find our fulfillment in his glory, then we can wait on him to open the doors of greater influence in his time. That’s really his business entirely. Ours is to live faithfully wherever he puts us now.”
Today’s question: What Bible verses enable you to demonstrate faith following your ministry downsizing or vocation loss? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “Does God have a deaf ear?”
