Trusting God’s timing in the midst of chaos

We know that trusting God is one of the most important things when it comes to Christianity, but why the heck is it so hard? It’s easy to trust God when life is going the exact way we want it to- we’re crushing it at our job, our marriage is full of rainbows and butterflies and we just feel good, real good. But then life takes a turn and we have a lot more ups and downs, wrong turns made, mistakes, hesitation, and we immediately feel as though God has left us all alone. Umm God, my life is in shambles, where’d ya go?

He’s still there & closer than ever, even though it doesn’t always feel that way. “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight” Proverbs 3:5-6. Ugh. I read that verse and I do believe it but when push comes to shove, I throw a fit when I actually have to do it. I mean, He says in ALL your ways. But what if those ways aren’t really working for me, ya know? I want my timeline to be the exact same as God’s. I mean down to the millisecond. When our timeline doesn’t seem to be adding up to God’s, you can say hello to stress, anxiety, fear and disappointment. Let me share a little story because I did this exact thing to myself a couple weeks ago.

Dan and I came back from our month long van life adventure on the biggest life high ever! I mean I was in full blown hippie mode. Example- “you guys, the world is beautifully rad, don’t litter, climb a mountain, pee in the woods and be exhilarated, I’m never getting a normal job, I’m never living in one spot for more than three months, I’m going to save every animal that needs me etc”. I came home and those were all the thoughts running through my head. I thought I KNEW what was going to happen next in my life and it was going to consist of way more traveling, saying goodbye to MI, working remote until the day I die and Dan and I never getting mad at each other, ever. I bet you can guess what happens next. None of those things. Coooome ooooooon God.

I had it all figured out. All of it. Now, those things may happen again in a little bit, but right now? Nope. God has a different plan right now. When Dan and I came back to Michigan we lived with my papa for a little while and now we’re with my mother in law and don’t get me wrong, they’re great and I love them to death, but this wasn’t part of ‘my’ plan.

I struggled for three weeks trying to wrap my head around the fact that ‘my’ plan wasn’t going to work out the way I thought. I felt as though the rug had been yanked right out from underneath me. I mean who goes from living the dream to being a big ball of confusion in the matter of a week? I got myself so worked up I struggled with bad headaches, anxiety, being super antsy and just not feeling like myself at all. I had to change my entire mindset and I didn’t want to (man, I sound whiney).

So, I knew my next step was to do what most Christians do in times of “what the heck is going on”. I prayed. And then prayed some more. Oh, and then I prayed again. Now I wish I could tell you that God opened a door within my first ten prayers but He didn’t, and you know what? That’s ok. There’s always a lesson to be learned in times of confusion. For me, it was to learn the exact thing I’m writing about today, to trust. God is teaching me to be patient, to have peace, to listen to His voice and not my own and to be thankful for what I have right now instead of forgetting all that and focusing on what I ‘want’. I have a husband who’s my absolute best friend, a roof over my head, adorable doggos, food, coffee, you guys, my family and my health. When I look at life that way, I’m pretty stinkin’ lucky. God will open the right door for Dan and I when He’s ready and I truly believe that.

God’s timing IS perfect. He knows exactly what we need. It may seem horrible while we’re going through it, but don’t you dare give up. God is right there with you. He hasn’t forgotten about you and He hears your cries. God WILL open the right door and when He does, don’t be scared to walk through it. It may not line up perfectly with your timeline or specific life plan but that’s ok. Step out and trust. And then trust some more. When you’re in a season of waiting like we are, you have to do what you can with what you have. Just because life may not seem like a huge adventure at the moment, this exact second in time IS part of your grand adventure. You may not be standing on top of a mountain or swimming with sharks, but your life is still special and meaningful. This specific moment may not seem very special, but it’s special to God because He sees the big picture and He’s molding you into the perfect version of YOU!

Life is tough and we’re all trying to figure it out. The world puts so much pressure on us to do this, not that, look this way, work this job, blah blah, but God doesn’t. He’s proud of us. He’s looking down smiling at the hard work we’re putting in. He will answer our prayers, we just have to be patient and trust. Yep, trust. “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” Romans 15:13.

I hope you never ever forget how great you are and how much meaning you give this world! Keep on trusting and pushing forward. Everything is unfolding as it should and it’s all going to be okay. Jesus loves you and so do I!