Clothe Me in your Joy, Oh Lord.

Genesis 18

"Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.” Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?” Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, "Will I really have a child, now that I am old?" Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.” 

To Sarah, a barren woman having a sweet little child was beyond the power of God. She felt hopeless... like seriously though, can you blame poor woman?  Instead of trusting in the Lord, she chose someone more fitting for the role-- Hagar, her servant. Hagar was a young, fertile woman, who was almost everything that Sarah was not. Though Ishmael was birthed from the lineage of Abraham, he was not, nor would he ever become, the chosen son of the promise. 

I am Sarah. And I am sure that you are, too. There is a type of waiting that shakes you to your core-- soul-wrenching, heart-crushing, painful waiting. God is there, too. 

Clothe me in your joy, O Lord.

Countless times, He looks at us, laughs, and shakes His head. If only we could see the plan about to unfold. 

"But Mallory, don't you know that this season of waiting has a purpose"

The minute I stop trying is the minute that God moves. He is the kind to move MOUNTAINS... not just hills. His plan is unknown to me, but His love surely is. I pray that His love has been made known to you, too. 

We are exhausted. We are scatter-brained. We are anxious; often disappointed because the wait is almost too much to bear. We are all of these because this race we are running was never ours to run. Let Him fight for you. You must be still. 

​Clothe me in your joy, O Lord.

Whatever God has promised you is what it will be. He is not asking you to “figure it out." He is asking you to truly trust in your heart that He and He only is waiting for you there. Waiting to us seems like a waste of time... but waiting for God means digging deep into our heart and forming our desires to align with His perfect and pleasing will. According to Psalm 27:14, it's the waiting that strengthens our heart. The most beautiful part of waiting is experiencing the excruciating ache of hope. It is not just you in the waiting-- He is there too. 

John 13:7 says,
“Jesus replied, "you do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand." 

Real talk here, my friends… there are many seasons where we are left frustrated. If the desires of our hearts are from the Lord, why do we not have those things? When the timing is truly, truly perfect, He will come through for you. When those desires are finally met, my prayer for you is that you understand why the season of waiting was intentional.

Whatever you do, chase after your king. Do not let the wait overlook what He is doing in and through you in the present. My prayer for you is that you live fully convinced that God is who He says He is... and that He, too, is in the waiting. 

Clothe me in your Joy, O Lord. 
​
Psalm 30:11-12 says,
“You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing your praises and not be silent. Lord my God, I will praise you forever.