And sometimes you wait, and you don’t get what you want.

But maybe that’s not so bad. There could be something in the waiting that helps you more than you know.

I’ve been on a little bit of a journey. There’s been a lot of waiting, some false starts, and then some more waiting. It began a long time ago when I decided I wanted to write something that mattered.

That seems clear enough, but somehow that got a little jumbled, and I stopped thinking about the things that mattered and started focusing on the next nifty, trendy tactic I could try that would appeal to the masses. Maybe that’s good marketing, but in the end what will it mean to the masses if they didn’t hear the truth—if it didn’t matter.

So I started on a journey to figure out why I write.

Back in 2011, my tagline was Messed up and Broken … Loved and Forgiven. I was sorely feeling the messed up and broken part and hoping desperately for the loved and forgiven. My reasons for writing got blurred by my personal need to write myself out of heartache and pain. My life was a bit of a mess back then.

Maybe that’s why this journey has been so hard for me. Nothing felt right because I had a lot to do on the inside.

Sometimes we’re forced to wait.

But that’s not so bad. There’s love in the waiting. There’s hope.

I waited, not knowing what else I could do. I didn’t want to settle for the good answer. I didn’t want to manufacture an answer where there was none. I didn’t want to be fake. I wanted it to be me, and I wanted it to matter. I couldn’t make that happen, though. I know I talk a lot in here about getting up and doing something, but the truth is sometimes there’s nothing else you can do, but wait, and that’s okay.

Wait and pray.

Now, I may not have mentioned God yet, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t there the whole time. Looking back, I can see how various events worked together to be his stepping stones to get me the answer to my question. I didn’t see them at the time. At the time, his handiwork just seemed like me waiting—reading a book, agreeing to help someone, chatting with a friend. Nothing big really. Just a bunch of little stuff, but it all got me to where I wanted to go without me ever knowing I was doing more than merely waiting.

That’s what happens with God. He has more in mind than we do. I was waiting for a career while he was busy waking me up to a life.

I wanted to define why I write, and he wanted to give me something to say. It’s a story that’s not over yet, but it’s been some of the best waiting I’ve ever done. 

Are you waiting for something right now?

Are you trusting?

Have courage sweet friends. He has more in mind for you than you can ask or imagine!