November 22, 2017 Sandra Andrade

The road to Grasp Love has been a long and winding road. From having a general idea, to filling in some of the details, to finalizing the name, to getting the site up, and so many other little things — years have gone by. Years of praying for God’s guidance, years of planning, years of having many ideas but not being sure what do with them. Sound familiar?

We all have ideas and dreams in us, but waiting on God is worth the wait. Those years of waiting on God taught me so much about trusting His timing. But perhaps the biggest lesson given to me has nothing do with what I don’t know about my future, and everything to do with what I do know about my present.

The present time is a gift to us all. God gives us a picture of the present and shows us it directly prepares, influences, and impacts our future. Our future is actually made up of three pictures from the present — prayer, pruning, and perseverance.

a picture of Prayer

I don’t need to see my future to know I can pray for it right now. Prayer is powerful. When we pray, our hearts are transformed by God, regardless of His answer. (And HE WILL ANSWER!) As we pray, we choose to submit to God’s will to the point that we ask that His will be done in our lives. Any pride, any “know-it-all” attitude, and any fears about the future are washed away in God’s presence. Inward, heart transformation is at the center of preparing us for our future, but it can’t happen without God. A picture of our future includes present prayer.

a picture of Pruning

Pruning right now is necessary so we can get to our later (our future), just like a bridge is necessary to drive over a body of water. God wants to teach us things, grow things in us, and change us. The finished product is in our future, but in order to do all that, we have to go through trials and discipline. God has to rid us of all the things that hinder us from growing in Him. As God prunes us, we end up looking more and more like Jesus, the keeper of our future. A picture of our future includes present pruning.

a picture of Perseverance

As we pray, and as God prunes us, we must stay encouraged and persevere. Romans 5 tells us that perseverance produces character, and character produces hope, and that “hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.” In order to step into our future, we must persevere in prayer. In other words, we can’t give up and stop praying. In order to step into our future, we must persevere in pruning. In other words, when things get tough, we can’t just give up on God!

NO. Instead, we run the race faster, even if we’re limping, even if we’re tired, even if we’re hungry because WE KNOW that God will see us through! He is for us and not against us, and He goes before us, preparing every stepping stone for every step our feet will take.

the picture within the Picture

We may not have a clear, detailed picture of our future, but God has given us the three “pictures within the picture” — prayer, pruning, and perseverance. We may not know what God has planned for us, but we do know He holds our future in his hands.

Here’s to dreaming, praying, planning, and waiting on God!

What an amazing future awaits us all,
Sandra

Invite Him In

What dreams do you need to pray for this week?
What trials are you facing right now that are discouraging you?
What area of your life do you need God’s help/strength to persevere in?

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