Sometimes I feel like I'm being left behind, with friends entering serious relationships, getting engaged, and even having kids. Yet here I am, never having been on even a single date.
It's painful.
But I've realized something recently. If I truly believe that God has a purpose for my life, then I shouldn't be wishing for what someone else has. In addition, I don't really want what God has for my friends. I want what He has for me.
We All Have a Specific Seat in the Orchestra
A couple months ago, I had the opportunity to attend a Beth Moore simulcast. Beth Moore is in women's ministry and has written a large number of devotionals. As it turns out, she is also the most amazing bundle of energy that I think I have ever seen in a grown woman.
Regardless, during this simulcast, she talked about this concept of a heavenly symphony in which we all have a part. It's a beautiful concept, and she did a wonderful job of elaborating on it. At one point, she was discussing the fact that each one of us has a seat in this heavenly orchestra. Each of us is designed to play one specific piece of the melody. We shouldn't be jumping into someone else's seat; we should be filling ours.
This concept has really impressed itself upon me recently. Of course I believe that God has a plan for me. I say it often enough; I sure hope I believe it. Yet how often do I see what someone else has, someone else's seat, and wish it was mine?
All too often, lately.
But I truly do want to play the piece that God has given me. That's when I'm happiest. That's when I'm most connected with Him. And that's why I don't want to be sitting in someone else's seat.
God Is a Storyteller
Being a storyteller myself, I think this is so cool. There's something so magical about creating a journey of emotional highs and lows out of one's imagination. And, the thing is, God has an infinite imagination. He's created a story for each one of us, a story that is unique and powerful and precious.
I'd much rather have my story written by the Creator of the Universe than by me. He's much more creative than I am, much more capable of plotting a story that makes sense and has meaning.
And He is definitely capable of writing the perfect ending to my story. An ending that creates order out of all the chaos, an ending that perfectly satisfies. Do I really want to miss out on that?
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| God is a Storyteller – Image Courtesy of Pixabay |
I Want What He's Bringing Me, Not What He Gave You
I may crave what my friends have – namely, a happy relationship with their significant other. But, ultimately, I don't want it. If that's what God has for them, that is awesome.
He's bringing me something different.
Oh, it may look similar. Outwardly, my eventual marriage will seem the same as that of my friends who are getting married now. But it won't be the same, because it's mine, not theirs. It won't be the same, because God gives us each a different story.
Whatever He chooses to bring me will be exactly what I need, even if it looks nothing like what I thought I wanted. Regardless of what my happy ending looks like, I know it will be happy. It may not occur in the timing I thought it should. It may not happen with the person I wanted it to. But it will happen. In God's perfect timing. And in His perfect grace.
What do you think of this concept? Do you ever struggle with feeling left behind? What do you do in those time? Let me know in the comments!
Although I'm in a similar position, my struggles have been mostly different. But I've recently been shown the importance of letting God write my story, rather than trying to do so myself. It shed new light on the phrase 'giving your heart to Jesus'.
ReplyDeleteSo true! I like that, Blue, putting it in perspective of "giving your heart to Jesus."
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