When encountering roadblocks in life it’s good to pray to God, and good to ask Him to come alongside you while you tackle the tough parts.
Sometimes, life doesn’t go our way. When I was a young child, I got into a really bad argument with my siblings. When I was in middle school my family moved away from my hometown and the only life I had ever known. When I was in high school and applying for college, I was rejected from my dream school. When I was in college, I had a bad relationship with a partner who didn’t care about me. I now work in a corporate office and my closest coworker has left the company. The common denominator for all of these moments in my life is this: I didn’t want any of them to happen.
Being a Christian does not mean that we are guaranteed a perfect life. We know this all too well. My life has been filled with so many incredible highs, but I’m no stranger to the lows. Lows come in all different forms for all kinds of people and at all different stages of life. However, what had always astounded me in these times was how I had prayed for the exact opposite of each of these things to happen. How could this be? What does that say about God? Aren’t prayers supposed to be answered?
It wasn’t until one day, when I was mindlessly scrolling Instagram, I stumbled upon a quote that I can’t get out of my head to this day. “I asked God for flowers and he gave me rain”. God communicates with us in such purposeful ways, and seeing this quote randomly was no exception. That’s when I realized that all this time my prayers were being answered, just not in the way I wanted. Instead, they were answered in the ways I needed, but didn’t even know. I didn’t realize that while I had been asking for a happy ending and a perfect destination with no bumps or bruises along the way, God was handing me the opportunity for transformation.
Think about a time in your life when you prayed for the best only to end up under a big cloud of unexpected rain. Maybe you too were rejected by your dream college. Maybe you too have had a rough period at work. Maybe it’s even less concrete than that.
When encountering roadblocks in life it’s good to pray to God, and good to ask Him to come alongside you while you tackle the tough parts. How can we expect victory without Him being there with us every step of the way? The only thing that I think we as Christians often miss is what it can look like when God answers those prayers. This is where the rain comes in. For example, asking Him for patience sometimes looks like God giving you opportunities to be patient. Asking Him for strength can look like God giving you opportunities to be strong. Asking Him for courage can look like God giving you opportunities to be courageous. He wants to change your heart and He wants to stand by your side while you do it.
“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” Romans 5:3-5
That rain that we all go through one time or many times, is meant for that transformation, and we come out the other end stronger for it. What we need to do is trust in God, even when our timing is not His timing. When I had prayed for the chance to advance in my job I didn’t realize it would take losing my coworker and going very far outside of my comfort zone, completely on my own to get there. Again, I
didn’t know at the time, but the college I actually went to instead of what I thought was my dream school allowed me to meet so many of my treasured friends and developed my faith in ways I never could have imagined. When I prayed for my dream school I didn’t realize I was praying about a different school altogether, God knew and He delivered.
“... for you know the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.” James 1:3
God is a teacher and a promise keeper, but He is not a genie. God’s will is the only way and we have to surrender. Prayers aren’t wishes and sometimes life comes with trials we want to wish our way out of. It is just not that easy and that is okay! We can all make it through by doing several important things.
1. Keep Praying
First, keep praying. God always wants to hear from you. Prayer brings peace and lays the solid bedrock for your life. That’s the level of relationship God wants with you, to talk all day, every day. How can we expect to live out a life with the Lord if we aren’t including Him in every moment, the good and the bad? I think the reason too that some people miss just how valuable the rain can be is that we’re focusing on the flowers. Asking God to guide you, to keep His hand over your life, can be one of the most powerful things to ask for, not that thing you want. Ask Him what He wants for you, trust me when I say that He will be happy to tell you. You’ll never be alone in the trials.
2. Have Gratitude
Second, have gratitude for what you do have. This is a hard one for me too. Too often I’m looking forward, admittedly too far forward, but I’m forgetting to look around. A lot of the times we’re living in a life we once prayed for. Our families, our church communities, our mentors, our careers, even the food we put on the table, it’s all blessings. Stop and express thanks for those blessings and for the glory of God! Don’t miss things because you have a wish list. Don’t take for granted the season you’re in by rushing full speed ahead. Come instead before God with a humble and thankful heart.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6
3. Don’t Take the Rain for Granted
Finally, and this may be the hardest one, don’t take the rain for granted. What I mean by that is don’t trudge through the trials, because that is truly not what God wants for us. He wants us to dance in the rain! He wants us to rejoice in the rain! In the end God redeems it all for GOOD. Lean on Him and lean on your community because chances are they’re walking through their own rain too. Know with every fiber of your being that He loves you and has a plan for you. You will get what is GOOD for you. Trusting God is a choice and so it is to be strong and to be patient Rejoice in the trials! Your circumstances are temporary but He is forever.
“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds.” James 1:2
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Julia_Sudnitskaya
