“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” – James 1:2-4
As I finish up my senior year of college, this verse has taken on a whole new meaning. Finding joy in the midst of every challenge and obstacle has been extremely difficult for me. Though patience is never explicitly mentioned, mental, physical and emotional perseverance in suffering requires supernatural amounts of patience. Oftentimes, I’ve found myself crying out to God for clarity and guidance because I hate to wait and be still.
During the first few days of the revival, God showed me that it was time to dive deeper into my spiritual life. When I asked Him to strengthen my faith muscles and make me bold, I didn’t expect that to mean waiting on the Lord’s timing and practicing audacious patience.
I struggle with a deep restlessness that can feel overwhelming. I always want to be doing- which doesn’t leave me much time for being with my Heavenly Father.
Many of the people I care about also struggle with an overpowering sense of restlessness and a longing for clarity. They have good intentions in their desire to make right decisions before God- but their feet are rooted in the ground. Next steps feel impossible.
So- how do we move forward and not become paralyzed by our uncertainties and weaknesses? How can we wait on the Lord but also step out in faith? How can we let go of our insecurities and indecisiveness so that we may be open to clarity from God?
Firstly, we should prepare our hearts with the fact that the Lord’s voice comes in many different forms.
God doesn’t always speak through sound. Sometimes he speaks through passages in our daily devotionals or verses that resonate with us as we spend time in the Bible. Sometimes God speaks through silence as we pray. Oftentimes, I’ve heard or felt the Holy Spirit through the words of a friend, the lyrics of a song, art and nature.
There are always days when I ask God why I can’t hear him. I wonder if He’s giving me the cold shoulder.
However, you can rest assured that God never abandons you. He loves you unconditionally. Maybe he’s simply prodding you to listen for his voice in a different form.
Secondly, we should evaluate the purpose behind our request for clarity.
God knows your every need and want. Sometimes he’s just waiting for you to ask the right questions. He wants us to be bold about the specific desires of our hearts, trusting in his compassion as a loving Father. God won’t always give us the ultimate answer or solution to our problems. But He will open up our hearts and eyes to the little ways He’s setting us free each and every day. He provides us with enough strength to take one step at a time.
As it says in Matthew 7:7-8: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.”
Thirdly, we should focus inward and create space in our lives for God to move. When our lives are cluttered with outward distractions, it’s easy for Satan to leave seeds of doubt in the dark nooks and crannies. We begin to believe the Devil’s lies and worry that our impressions and thoughts from the Holy Spirit are our own wayward wonderings and nothing more.
If your thoughts can be used to further the kingdom of God here on earth or in yourself— they are not from you. As James 1:17 says, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”
Every good thought, word or action comes from God. When you begin to respond to the promptings of the Holy Spirit and fight against doubt, God will bless your efforts and give us confidence.
Lastly, we need to move forward in faith. The Lord calls us to keep pressing onward, no matter our current circumstances. As Christians, we can rest assured that the Lord is our safety net, giving us the freedom to move forward despite our uncertainties as a demonstration of our faith. When we do this, we invite even more powerful revelations from God.
In Hebrews 11:1, faith is described as “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Faith requires no answers or evidence- only hope. When we take our next steps, trusting that our Heavenly Father is good and in control, we move closer to heavenly clarity.
I hope these tips push you to live according to Romans 12:12: “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”
As humans, we won’t always have the clarity to know what’s right or wrong in a particular scenario.
Our Heavenly Father is our strength, empowering us to practice tenacious patience as we move forward in humble faith.