Leave Room for God
Waiting on God is fruitless if we’re not leaving room for him. Realize that I said fruitless and not pointless. I have received some of my most profound spiritual growth during waiting times. Some of those times have lasted years. (Sorry to some of you who are in waiting seasons.)
My last waiting season was long because I had to heal from my hurt and pain. God was preparing me for where he wanted me. Paul tells the Romans that we need to seek peace with everyone.
My last waiting season was long because I had to heal from my hurt and pain. God was preparing me for where he wanted me. Paul tells the Romans that we need to seek peace with everyone.
“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord.” –Romans 12:18-19 NIV
In that passage, Paul’s saying it’s not our responsibility to seek revenge, but God’s. This is because we don’t know the other person’s story. I now take the perspective of giving grace before judgment for 2 reasons:
Morgan wrote this about the passage above when he came across them:
In that passage, Paul’s saying it’s not our responsibility to seek revenge, but God’s. This is because we don’t know the other person’s story. I now take the perspective of giving grace before judgment for 2 reasons:
- I don’t know what’s happening in another person’s life, just as they don’t know what’s happening in mine. Every day and week, I leave work with a list of things I wanted to get done that didn’t happen. As a Type A person, I feel I’ve failed those people. Yet, I know I must call it a day and rest because God asks it of us. Everyone around me must do the same. I don’t know what’s on their list, so I can’t understand why they called it a day when they did.
- It makes me a more joyful person to leave other people to God and only worry about myself. If I offer grace first without knowing the why, I spend more time loving and judging less. Overall, I’m just happier that way.
Morgan wrote this about the passage above when he came across them:
“One night when I was worried sick about something, I found four words sitting quietly on page 1291 of my Bible. I’d read them countless times before, but as I stared at them this time, they fairly flew at me like stones from a slingshot. The four words, now well underlined in my New International Version, are leave room for God.” –The Red Sea Rules, by Robert J. Morgan (Rule 5)
Thoughts to Ponder
- Are you waiting, or are you worrying?
- What would life look if you gave grace instead of judgment?
- Do you consider yourself in a season of waiting?
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