just a little while longer....

Patience is something I needed to learn as an adult (delaying gratification didn't come easy for me)  it's a virtue that the LORD has been "oh so patient" to teach me over the years. "Thank you Jesus".

Before I knew God, I was the type of person who thought she was entitled to the things she wanted when she wanted them. I had a hard time comprehending why I had to wait for anything. I would think to myself, "why can't I have it now? What's the benefit of waiting until tomorrow? Seize the day, right?"

But I was wrong. There is so much value in waiting. 

When we rush the process of things, we find ourselves at the end of our journey with a house that's built on sand - superficial love, friendships without depth, a decaying body, immoral character, and bad habits. That is the reality I found myself in after I stood before the King of the Universe and asked for His forgiveness.

​The day His Holy Spirit entered into my body, I was forever changed. Everything looked different. 

It's not easy walking away from the life you made. To watch everything you once knew and loved sink before your eyes is hard. You have to be chasing after something pretty magnificent to leave everything you build behind to start again. 

But I assure you, the Lord Jesus Christ is worth chasing after.

"Anyone who loves his father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me; and anyone who does not take up his cross and follow Me is not worthy of Me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake will find it."
- Jesus Christ (Matthew 10:37)

Walking with the Lord is my greatest joy - but it doesn't mean it's been easy. I've had to let go of people, places and things. I have had to let go of old behaviors and ways of thinking that were contrary to the Word of God. I needed to re-evaluate my priorities and my loyalties. I needed to let go of my desires and wants so I could make room for the plans God had for my life.

But it was all worth it. 

The pain, the suffering, the tears, the despair.
The waiting, the praying, the hoping, the enduring.
The stopping, the starting, the silence, the thinking.

The time I spent in the wilderness - alone with God, and God alone - was worth it.

I feel inclined to say that not everyone needs to walk away from the life they built, but those of us who built their life on sand, those of us who lived in a distorted reality where up was down and wrong was right - do.

It's the only way to learn what's right and see the truth; you have to walk away from the lies and the deceit. You have to leave the world as you know it, if you want to enter the Kingdom of God and be transformed.

But here's the good news and God's promise.

"After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you." (1 Peter 5:10)

He's a good God, my friend. 
​And He's worth chasing after.

Praise God.
Praise God, indeed. ❤️​