We all go through seasons of trials and testing. You are doing the right thing but feel like you are going backwards instead of forwards. When our dreams take longer than we expected, we tend to get discouraged. I want to remind you what God says, “Do not get discouraged. Payday is coming!”
Just as there are seasons of growth, there is a season for preparation. During these waiting times, God is working on our character, separating the impurities, and polishing the rough edges. It may be uncomfortable but if we stay on the potter’s wheel, we are going to come out better off than we were before. We will have more peace, joy, health, fulfillment, purpose, promotion, and vindication.
On a mission trip to China, I learned about the Chinese bamboo tree. This remarkable plant is different from most others that grow in the region. Unlike other plants that show consistent growth, bamboo does not break through the ground for the first four years. In the fifth year, however, an amazing phenomenon happens, and the plant begins to grow at an astonishing rate. Over the next five weeks, it reaches the height of eighty feet.
Life is similar in many ways. You must first put down deep roots through the building of character, developing good habits, and sharpening your skills. You may not see progress right away, but overtime things will begin to take off. Suddenly your business thrives and becomes profitable. Your marriage becomes stronger. You move into your dream house. Your church begins to explode. Your life becomes more meaningful and significant.
Do not fight off what seems uncomfortable in your life. God is using the very thing you are trying to pray away. I recently spoke with a friend whose entire family was infected with COVID-19. My 55-year-old friend told me that he kept a positive attitude. For years, he has suffered from severe back pain. COVID-19 causes inflammation. As a result, the pinched nerve came loose, and he has no more back pain. He has been pain free for six months! God knows how to deliver you from pain, struggle, hardship, heartache, and troubles.
When you find yourself in a season of preparation, you may not understand everything that happens along the way. You may not like the delays and the detours, but God is setting you up. You may have lost your current job, but He is orchestrating a better one in your future. You may have suffered a setback in your health, but God will restore health back unto you. Finances may be tight, but He will bring you to a place of abundance. You may have been trying to have a baby, and this could be the year it happens. When you see and feel the least, that is when God is working the most.
Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see. This is what happened to Abraham when God put a dream in his heart that he would become the father of many nations. Twenty-four years went by and there was still no sign of a baby. Abraham and Sarah were nearly 100 years old. It looked impossible. The enemy must have whispered in their ears how it was impossible. They could have talked themselves out of it. Yet, the Bible says that “Abraham grew strong in faith by giving praise to God.” When you praise God in times of difficulty, it gives you strength to persevere. When Abraham was 100 years old when his son Isaac was born. God fulfilled His promise.
Friend, your business may be slow, your child may be off track, your health may not be up to par, and your marriage may be struggling. The key is to praise God in the mist of the trials and testing. When you anticipate a miracle, and wait patiently with a good attitude, you will come into your promotion. Like the Chinese bamboo, you will see sudden growth. Like my friend, your health will turn around. And like Abraham, you will see your dreams come true. Now prepare yourself, for the promotion that is coming. What the Lord promised you will come to pass.
“Do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised” (Hebrews 10:35-36 NIV).
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