Melinda and Shawn had been friends since they were kids. Their moms were best friends, so they had plenty of play dates and were joined at the hip as they got older. In high school, they were inseparable and shared everything, but as their friendship continued to grow through college, Shawn developed strong feelings for Melinda. He had fallen in love with her, but she didn’t have a clue. For months, he had been praying for a sign from the Father to tell her how he felt, and when that sign wasn’t as clear as he wanted, Shawn was puzzled and disappointed. He wondered why the Lord wasn’t giving him the green light he expected.
Often, we ask God for signs when, in our hearts and minds, our intentions are to do exactly as we want. We’re asking God to cosign our wills instead of His Will, and we must be clear that He doesn’t play those games. The psalmist wrote in Psalm 115:3(ESV), “Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.” This is a powerful truth. God doesn’t need our permission to carry forth His Will and Word. The wisdom of Proverbs 19:21(NLT) tells us, “You can make many plans, but the LORD’s purpose will prevail.” God’s Will is fully transparent, and it is revealed within His Word. He’s not trying to hide anything from us, because He doesn’t have to. God always speaks the truth.
Numbers 23:19(NLT) says, “God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?” We are monumentally blessed to love and honor a God that is righteous, good, and true all the time. He is forever and always faithful to His Word, and we can depend on this with all that we are. So, our goal as it relates to anything we desire or attempt to pursue in life is to first identify what pleases God, and then to understand His purpose. If we are faithful to trust Him despite any signs we do or do not perceive, the Holy Spirit will lead and guide us in both of these.
What pleases God?
Shawn was raised by believing parents, and he was taught the Word of God, but like all of us, he needed to learn more about our Heavenly Father in order to develop his faith. He had not learned that pleasing God is above all else in our Christian walk, and every good thing that we desire and attempt to do hinges on that central privilege and responsibility. Hebrews 11:6(NKJV) tells us, “But without faith [it is] impossible to please [Him], for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and [that] He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” This is a foundational truth! Our Heavenly Father rewards us when we diligently seek Him, and our hearts and minds must be anchored in this truth for our entire spiritual journey in Christ.
Diligence is required in our relationship with God. We can’t do the least, like Cain did in the Old Testament, and think this is acceptable. We must be diligent to grow in faith in God’s love, power, and sovereignty, because this is what pleases Him. We must also understand that waiting on God is required as well. After a few months of praying about what Melinda’s response would be to declaring his feelings, and also asking God if she was the one for him, Shawn didn’t feel that he had heard a ‘yes’ or a ‘no’ from the Father about this. Rather than continuing to wait, he decided to act. On the same night that he declared his feelings for Melinda, she planned to share the news that she had met someone she really liked. Shawn was so disappointed because he believed he had acted in faith.
Psalm 27:14(ESV) tells us, “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” Many of us put a timeline on this. We believe it is up to us to determine how long we should wait. The reality is that the timing isn’t as important to our Heavenly Father as our obedience to do what this verse says. God expects us to have faith that when we pray and ask Him to intercede, He will do exactly that. And He will move according to His perfect timing. He will cause all the details to come together in a way that satisfies His Will, and therefore, brings us joy and abundance as well.
God does indeed give us meaningful signs that can help to guide our choices and decisions, but our faith can’t be dependent on receiving signs. Our faith must be in the reality that God is who He says He is, and He will do what He said He will do.
Relationships involve other people, and God will never overstep the free-will choice of another human being to give us what we want. He’s simply not going to do that. It could have been that Shawn needed to wait because he was still immature in ways that are very important to significant relationships. Rather than confessing his love to Melinda, he could have given that whole situation over to the Lord and waited to be guided by God’s Holy Spirit. It’s possible that this guidance might have taken a year or two. That might have been the time it would take for Shawn to be ready to hear Melinda’s response and react to it in a way that turned her heart to him.
Our purpose
Our purpose for being on this earth is to grow in our relationship with God through Jesus Christ. In our lists of priorities, this must always be number one. Our Heavenly Father knows who and what is best for us. He tells us in Psalm 118:8(ESV), “It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man.” And Jeremiah 17:7(ESV) says, “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord.” Our God is not slow to act. He’s patient and brilliant! His promises are absolute, and they will not fail us. Many believers are praying to receive the manifestation of their desires, and waiting can be discouraging at times, but we cannot allow that to hinder our faith in God, because He is our faith! Heavenly Father hears our prayers, and He is helping us to grow spiritually so that nothing is more important to us than pleasing Him and fulfilling His purpose for our lives. Everything falls in line when our hearts and minds are centered on this. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
“God’s Promises Are Absolute”, written by KLizzie, edited by Reverend Fran Mack, for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2023. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.