Be Where You Are

Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him.
~ 1 Corinthians 7:17 (NIV)

Patience and I can be good friends...at least for a little while! :) I am certain that impatience is one of the things that I've battled more than any other over the course of my life and I think that's because often having patience requires me to just sit still and wait. I like to move, to plan, to do! I don't like to wait because so often I feel like it's just a waste of my time and therefore my life. I should be doing something instead of waiting to be doing something!

As I came across this verse not too long ago I was again convicted that God has placed me in this moment in time for a purpose. He is working at all times but my responsibility is not to run out ahead of Him and check out the path. It's to stay in the place where He has me and be faithful there. That's what I'm to do and in the doing I'm to let God work out the details for the next steps and move only when He calls me.

Just in case you're not totally grasping the verse above, let me share it with you in The Message:

Don't be wishing you were someplace else or with someone else. Where you are right now is God's place for you. Live and obey and love and believe right there.
~ 1 Corinthians 7:17a (The Message)

Holy cow! It gets even more convicting in this version! If I could just tattoo this verse on my forehead and live it every moment of every day I think that my impatience problem would resolve itself entirely! I know I'm not the only one who struggles with this area - it's a challenge no matter what stage of life you're walking through right now. Perhaps you think that there's never going to be a husband or wife in your future, or that your job can't possibly change, or that you'll never be a mom or dad. Read these verses again and listen to what God is really saying here.

He put you exactly where you are today in exactly the circumstance you find yourself in this exact moment in time for a REASON!!!! Maybe you know what it is and maybe you don't but that doesn't really matter because God does! So just seek to obey Him in the spot you're at and don't worry about where He wants you down the road. The journey is where life is lived, not at the destination.

Seek to appreciate every second God blesses you with wherever you are and know that He's always at work and someday He'll likely move you on but the timing of that is His deal, not ours. Know too that I'm walking through the same challenges here - just because I can write about it doesn't mean I've got it all figured out either!

Until next time, trust in His purpose for placing you in this moment. All I can promise is that He's got a good one!