Waiting Through Unanswered Prayers
“There are years that ask questions, and years that answer.” ~Zora Neale Hurston
A decade ago, I attended a dear friend’s wedding and watched him marry the love of his life. My heart burst with a ridiculous amount of joy for him and his new bride, and at the same time I felt a piercing sadness and a deep longing.
I was single.
I had attended fifty weddings in five years.
Yes, fifty.
I love weddings, and I celebrated each union with real joy. But somewhere along the line, I had noticed a longing creeping into my heart for a wedding of my own, and a sadness that my prayers for a husband and family were not being answered. Oh, I would usually stuff these feelings back down inside at warp speed, reminding myself that I was waiting for God’s best, that his timing is always perfect, and that I was, after all, thankful for the experiences my singleness afforded me. I am a consummate good girl, and I knew my thoughts would just get me in trouble, but in quiet moments these questions still lingered:
When will it be my turn, Lord?
Am I worthy?
Will he really be worth the wait?
What I didn’t know that night, as I laughed and danced at my fiftieth wedding, was that two weeks later I would meet the man who would become my husband. All I knew was that as I watched my friend twirl his bride across the dance floor, the deep ache in my heart was growing, and the unanswered questions and prayers of years seemed to ring in my ears at a deafening level.
Ten years later, I sit on my couch writing this in the cozy home I share with my husband, and those same questions have been answered:
When will it be my turn, Lord? My turn came four years later. And during those four years, I would be shaped, humbled, sharpened, softened, and begin to learn how to truly love unconditionally. They were years filled with an immense amount of challenge, growth, and preparation, and they were absolutely invaluable.
Am I worthy? Absolutely! But I would have to learn the hard way that my worth could not be measured by any man, that it comes solely from our Father above. I am more than worthy. I am chosen.
Will he really be worth the wait? Without a shadow of a doubt. I had no clue God made hearts as beautiful and loving as the heart of my sweet J. I am humbled daily by this man, and I will never be able to thank God enough for blessing me so richly, even when I doubted.
Friends, there will always be seasons of questions and seasons of answers, no matter where we are in life. These seasonal shifts are part of life. But can I tell you something of great importance? The growth that happens between the questions and the answers is what truly transforms us. It’s the waiting, the shaping, and the refining during these seasons that purifies our hearts and prepares us for the journey ahead. We may not always get the answers we want from God, but he always has our best interests at heart. He is good and loves us.
I ran across this quote by the poet and writer Jean Ingelow the other day, and could not agree more with it:
“I have lived to thank God that all my prayers have not been answered.”
Amen.
Lord, I thank you for loving us enough to not always answer our prayers, and giving us what we need rather than what we want. You give us the gift of waiting to purify our hearts, cultivate our patience, birth compassion, and prepare us for the journey ahead. May we see the small blessings through the pain of waiting for our hearts’ desires, and may we lay our desires at your feet because we know your will is more important than our own. Amen.
Scripture for Reflection
“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'” (Jeremiah 29:11 NIV)
Reach for More
This week’s challenge is think about one of your own unanswered prayers. What have you learned while you have waited? How have you been changed or shaped? Jot down some or all of the ways you have been blessed in this time of waiting, no matter how bittersweet they may be. Gratitude is a precious gift in seasons of waiting.
Sarah Lundgren has a passion for all things sparkly, loves God with her whole heart, and is known to love Starbucks chai lattes a whole lot, too. Sarah is currently snuggled in the heart of Grand Rapids, Michigan with her sweet hubby, J, and her full-time job is making pretty things all day long for her Etsy business, so sarah designs, but she also loves writing devotional content here at The Glorious Table.
You have hit the nail on the head yet again. I wouldn’t be in the loving marriage I am had there been some unanswered prayers in my younger days. There was a plan, i just didnt know it. We are so blessed. I hope to someday meet you in person (ask my kelly girl). You writing always speaks to me. Keep it up!
Oh, Miss Emily, you are such a beautiful encouragement to my heart! Thank you! You are so so right…there is always a plan, we just don’t usually know it! Amen!
I am saying “amen” as tears fill the corners of my eyes. I am in a period of waiting. I lift up the prayer for the waiting soul with you, a sacrifice of my will and my control for the blessing of God’s best.
These are the moments where I wish I could drive to your house, hug you fiercely, and we could say amen together through the tears. I will wait WITH you and pray FOR you. xoxo
Thank you Sarah for the reminder of patience today. We are always in such a hurry to do, be and get that we forget it will come in Gods time not ours. Love to you Sarah. ❤️
Miss Janet, you are such a beautiful source of love and encouragement! Thank you so much for this!!! Love you dearly!
So incredible of a writer you are! I love this post! I for one waited a long time too, and know that longing all too well. And because of God’s goodness I am married to the most incredible woman in the world and a true reflection of Christ. I am humbled by her love, compassion, and grace every day. I am so thankful to God for her. She was beyond more than worth waiting for. Thank you for this wonderful post, a great reminder of how good God is. 🙂
Tears of joy for God’s gift of you both. ❤
Waiting is the hardest part. Great words today Sarah!
Amen! Thank you Miss Denise!
Your experience is so much like mine! I sat in a wedding on New Year’s weekend one year and thought, “It will be a long time before this happens to me.” Two weeks later, I met my future husband, and the next New Year’s Eve, I was on my honeymoon! That was more than nineteen years ago. It truly IS better to trust His timing.
Oh Miss Carole, I just LOVE that we have had similar experiences! Thank you for sharing this with me!!!
“There will always be seasons of questions and seasons of answers, no matter where we are in life. These seasonal shifts are part of life.” Profoundly true. I was making plans to marry my high school sweetheart. God kept coming to me with question after question, breaking my heart at the prospect of breaking his. Although I prayed long and hard for my fiancee’s spiritual growth, the prayers were unanswered. When I surrendered and released my dream of marriage, God revealed His choice for me, a young man far above what I could ask or think. I have wept many a time, in deep gratitude, for God’s persistence in the midst of unanswered prayer. “His ways are not our ways,” and that’s a very good thing! Thanks for a great article!
Miss Susan, thank you for sharing your story with me! I, too, have wept many a time in deep gratitude over who God chose for me. Thank you for reading and sharing a little piece of your heart with me!
There is beauty in the waiting. I am waiting. Patiently, maybe — or maybe not. 🙂
Oh Miss Brianna, I feel you…patience is a virtue I think I will be forever cultivating…lol!
For all the waiting women out there … thank you!
And, thank YOU for how you inspire all the waiting women with all YOUR beautiful and God-given words! You are such a gift!
I thank God for my incredible nephew, Jason and his adorable wife, Sarah. This is a beautiful story, may we always be thankful to God for every breath we take. He certainly knows what is best for us!
We are so incredibly thankful for YOU! You are such a blessing to us in every way!
definitely thankful that relationships I prayed so hard for failed! looking back I can see God’s wisdom in protecting me from those boyfriends.
Right?! Me too! So thankful that God loved me enough to say ‘no’ at times I begged for a ‘yes’.