It’s not fair! Exhaling in a huff, I allowed the week’s frustrations a momentary expression. I was working with an assigned group, or rather, I was working, the others, not so much. Yet, we would all be assessed the same.
While it truly wasn’t fair, there wasn’t much I could do. I would not refuse the task before me. I wouldn’t gossip. But I was sure to talk to God about it. And He was getting an earful!
In Psalm 5:3, God instructs us to do just that. “In the morning Lord, You hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.”
Beyond the venting I was already doing, God wanted me to learn to wait expectantly. He wanted me to know somehow, some way, He would change this scenario. Either changing the circumstances or changing my response to them.
Waiting is hard. Waiting expectantly, with a positive attitude, is even harder.
Psalm 37:7 showed me how to wait before God: to be still and wait patiently. I couldn’t pace. Or fret. Or fume. He wanted me to completely surrender the ordeal into His capable hands. Wait patiently, expectantly.
The picture of me sitting at His feet, smiling in a perfect, patient pose didn’t match the reality of the raging ramifications of being caught in too much work with too little help from a team who didn’t care enough.
In learning to relinquish those frustrations, I had to admit the Lord doesn’t author frustrations. But He does want me to trust Him- especially when frustrations arise. Isaiah 30:18 comforted me: “Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore, He will rise up to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for Him.”
In my quest to combat impatience, I’d found a formula: Carry it to God
Be still.
Wait expectantly.
Be blessed.
My group dynamics didn’t change. In fact, at the final presentation, I was the solo presenter. This naturally, didn’t go unnoticed by the professors. In a rare break from the rubric, I received one grade while my colleagues received another.
But the blessing I received was in that I was learning how to carry things to God. I was learning I didn’t need to fix it. I didn’t need to frantically find a solution. I was slowly learning how to be still and wait expectantly.
Learning how to surrender was the best blessing of all.
Maybe you, like me, struggle to surrender those feelings of “it’s not fair”. It can feel impossible! But with God, anything, anything, is possible. We only need to ask Him for His help. WIll you join me in doing just that?
Prayer: Dear Lord, I get caught up in my life, my events, my frustrations. When it’s not fair, help me not to become bitter, but surrender it to You. Teach me to be still, wait expectantly, and to bask in Your blessings. In Jesus’ name, Amen.