As my fingers tightly grasped the new-to-me, leather steering wheel, I gave a head nod to the car's previous owner. It was my way of thanking him again, for a successful and smooth transaction. He waved as he watched me carefully pull out of the parking lot. I turned onto the main intersection, and as soon as I knew I was out of earshot of any pedestrians or passersby, I screamed "Hallelujah! Thank you Goooood!" at the top of my lungs.
It had been a long wait. And some years, the wait felt excruciating. But at this moment, I had received my promise and all I could do was laugh, praise God and cry simultaneously as I drove my new-to-me SUV down the street.
Have you ever prayed for a blessing and it seemed like it would never come? Maybe you are in that season of your life now. Perhaps you are single and are praying for a spouse that has yet to appear. Or maybe you are a stay-at-home momma, and you are praying for the time when your children are older and a bit more independent. Or you are praying for an increase in finances, and have yet to see any evidence of fruit from your prayers?
Regardless of the time that has elapsed between your prayers and it's manifestation, God wants you to endure the time with patience.
Hebrews 10:24-25 says:
So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now so that you will continue to do God's will. Then you will receive all that He has promised.
Speaking Of Patient Endurance....
My husband and I endured four years of cars that ran but were...well...jalopies. For four years, we traveled to church, transported people to church, traveled to prisons for ministry, and led Christian 12-step classes...all while driving cars that made noises, looked funny, and at times emitted funky fumes.
For the first few years, I didn't mind driving a hooptie. In 2016, after returning home from a prayer meeting, our car was totaled by a tractor-trailer. I was thankful that God had spared me and my husband's lives and was super grateful when my mother offered her 14-year-old SUV for us to use, that I figured driving a hooptie would be temporary. However, as time went on, whenever we did try to save money for a new car, a more urgent financial crisis would appear and our car savings would be depleted.
(Pictured is the car my mom gave us along with a few kids we picked up for church)
One day my mother's car stopped working and for 2 1/2 years, my husband and I shared a 12- year old Ford Escape that I had prior to our marriage. During these past 2 1/2 years, my husband and I have learned teamwork. We learned to share -- I know this sounds funny because you supposedly learn how to share in kindergarten -- but from having to share one vehicle we learned to compromise, and serve each other. There were times when my husband would have to drop me off at a location, do what he needed to do, and then come across town to pick me up and vice versa. It was hectic, cumbersome, and at times frustrating, but we did it.
Patient endurance is not something we ask God for when making our prayer requests, but it is something we all need. We need the strength to patiently endure the hard seasons in our life, so we won't give up and miss God's delightful promises.
Truthfully, there was a moment recently when my patient endurance seemed to run out. After our Ford Escape stopped working last week and we had no car to get around, I was ready to forgo my plan of debt freedom, and obtain a loan for a new car. Thankfully my husband calmly reminded me of our plan to purchase a car with cash. So we decided to patiently endure a bit more.
It is in this extended waiting period, where Satan tempts you to compromise, settle or make things happen in your own strength. This is why the writer of Hebrews says, "you need patient endurance." Patient endurance is necessary. It is an active faith and determination heart that says: I am going to trust God and experience the rewards that come from trusting and waiting on Him.
Ultimately, our blessing for a new car came. God provided our family with a pre-owned black-on-black BMW X5 SUV with a creamy, peanut butter-colored tan interior. I share the make and model of my car with you to emphasize how after waiting four long years of driving two hoopties; sharing a car with an 18 inch crack on the windshield; and how the thermostat on the said car only blew cold air or hot air at its maximum; how one day pulling up through a fast-food window, the teenager working the drive-thru mocked my husband and laughed at our car. How after enduring the many tests and frustrations that come with a busy couple in ministry sharing one car; and how I had to swat away the enemy's lies and taunts for years about how I would never own a nice car....the promise has come.
Will you refuse to throw away or discard your confident hope in God?
Will you refuse to give up on the dream, or vision planted by God that is inside your heart?
Will you purpose in your heart, that today you will ask for and receive God's beautiful, hearty grace to patiently endure every trial, and test that comes your way?
While waiting, will you trust God, and have a heart of thankfulness, as you patiently endure?
Each and every time I get into my car, I smile. Satan wanted my husband and me to give up. To throw in the towel and stop believing for our blessing. I'm a witness that God will give you the grace to patiently endure every test and hardship so you can receive all that He has promised.
This article was published in Jewel Warrior, a Christian women's online devotional. Please subscribe to receive encouraging devotionals each day from women from around the world.
Hi, my name is Kacie Starr Long. I am an author, speaker and I love to use my voice to point people to Jesus. When I'm not writing, I'm either working out at Orange Theory Fitness or sewing. God delivered me from food addiction and I have a sewing ministry for women who have been previously incarcerated and at-risk teens. I am the proud wife to Alfred T. Long, Sr and together we lead a non-profit that serves prisoners and their families. Connect with me at www.InspiredOverflow.com and via my YouTube page for more daily Christian teachings and encouragement.
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