I didn’t win.
Remember that Guideposts Writer’s Workshop I told you about a few weeks ago? I was eagerly anticipating the call that said, “Congratulations! You’ve been selected…”
Yeah. That call never came. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday all came and all day long I stuck to my phone like glue, but the call never came.
Have you ever been in that place? Waiting for the go-ahead on something you desperately wanted? Maybe it was a job or an acceptance letter or a marriage proposal. It could be anything really.
Isn’t it funny how heavy our boots become when we don’t get what we want?
All of a sudden the rest of the things we’re supposed to be doing seem insurmountable and all we want to do is take a nap.
I was disappointed I didn’t win, but it was the target of my disappointment that had me concerned.
I was disappointed in God.
I really thought He put me on that path. I really thought He’d open that door and bless me extravagantly with that writing course. So when He didn’t, guess who I was mad at?
Yep. The Big Guy.
It’s funny in retrospect.
I sat down in my office and basically told God I wasn’t getting up until He had worked some softness back into my heart.
As I sat there thinking/praying I could see the parent-child relationship in full color. My own children get disappointed and mad at me when I tell them they can’t have something. It’s the same way between my Heavenly Father and me. I’m still a child, God knows that.
But He also knows why He’s saying no.
When my kids ask me for ice cream after dinner and I tell them no, it’s not because I don’t want them to have a treat. It’s because I know I’m taking them out for a surprise trip to Larry’s ice cream shop as soon as their dad gets home.
I have a plan and it’s for their good and their delight.
God has a plan and it’s for our good and our delight.
I was able to finally leave my office no longer angry at God when I realized I didn’t get that dream trip to the Writer’s Workshop because God has a different assignment for me. He needs me somewhere else with enough space in my schedule to accept His next mission.
How about you? Is it possible that God said no to that one thing you really wanted so He could say yes to something else?
He loves you, Friend. More than we love our own children and want to surprise and delight them, He wants to do that for us.
Look for the ways in which He is showing up in your life today. Look for the ways in which He is saying, “I’m here.” Look for the ways He is inviting you to interact with Him, and I know, just like me, you’ll be surprise and delighted by His love.