If you’ve been following this blog for awhile, you may remember a post from a couple years ago: Riding the Winds of Change

At the time, a few things that were important to me were changing. Or rather, they were about to change and I wasn’t sure what it was going to look like. It’s fun to look back now a couple years later… The sadness over leaving things I loved faded away with time, and the journey God has taken me on since still makes me pause in awe sometimes.

But, as with all seasons of life, even seasons of waiting, seasons of being hidden, and seasons of healing come to an end. Eventually, there comes a point where it is time to grow stronger again. Time to step forward again. Time to go again.

Yet again, I don’t know what it will look like. And yet again, I don’t know what the timing will be. This current season has lasted nearly three years now… And it has been five since the changes began to line up to take place.

I chuckle as I catch myself trying to figure out a timeline again. Again? Do I need to learn this lesson again? No, this time, I’ll wait and see.

It’ll probably happen next week now that I’ve said that, but hey, enjoy the journey, right? 😂

The thing is, the journey is a lot more fun once you’ve become more familiar with God. Knowing a little more of who He is and how trustworthy His character is. That’s been one of the main things I’ve been reflecting on the past few weeks: How thankful I am that He made me wait.

If He hadn’t made me wait, I wouldn’t have seen how completely He holds me and my life. I wouldn’t have seen how faithful and trustworthy He is. I wouldn’t have come to know Him as the Mighty God who uses His strength to shield and heal those who wait on Him. I wouldn’t have understood that true healing goes so much deeper than just learning to be ok again. And that life can be more vibrant outside of the status quo.

If God hadn’t made me wait, I would’ve kept making my plans and pushing ahead in my own strength, convinced that I needed to work harder for His acceptance. I’m so glad He frustrated my plans, showed me how small my own strength really is, and patiently taught me what it means to be loved by Him.

All of this to say, my prayer lately has been: Thank You for making me wait. Thank You for the season You made me walk through and for walking through it with me. It turned out to hold some of the sweetest lessons I have ever learned.

Friends, there is a time to heal, a time to be covered, a time to be hidden and to rest. But then, in due time, there comes a time to start really living again. A time to stand back up and let Him start strengthening you again. A time to come out from hiding.

If that’s you, don’t fight it. Let the walls fall. Let the cover lift. It’s a little bit unnerving, but it’s also exciting. No matter what comes next, you have a Rock to keep you steady this time. This time, you know you can trust the One who holds you close through anything and everything that comes.

Here’s to our journey, friends! Here’s to our seasons of change.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (NKJV)

To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:

² A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted;
³ A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
⁴ A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
And a time to dance;
⁵ A time to cast away stones,
And a time to gather stones;
A time to embrace,
And a time to refrain from embracing;
⁶ A time to gain,
And a time to lose;
A time to keep,
And a time to throw away;
⁷ A time to tear,
And a time to sew;
A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;
⁸ A time to love,
And a time to hate;
A time of war,
And a time of peace.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NKJV)

¹¹ He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.

Ecclesiastes 3:14 (NKJV)

¹⁴ I know that whatever God does,
It shall be forever.
Nothing can be added to it,
And nothing taken from it.
God does it, that men should fear before Him.