Every Good Gift

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father” James 1:17.

I believe that every one of us has at least one unanswered prayer that seems like we’ve been lifting to Heaven forever. Even now, most likely something just came to mind when you read ‘unanswered prayer.’ Last month our youngest daughter became engaged which was one of her unanswered prayers leading up to the engagement. Her fiancé had communicated with us a few weeks prior and gave us the details of the special day. Of course, she had no idea and was operating on the premise of her desire not being fulfilled. The morning after he told us about the plan, I had to run by her house to give her some items. She was having a tough morning and seemed to be down and out about a lack of engagement. As I sat there listening to her dismay and frustration I knew in my mind and heart the exact day, the exact way and the exact place of the fulfillment of her dream. My advice to her was to trust Robbie’s heart and be patient in the wait. I took pleasure in knowing that she only had to hang on for two more weeks.

I can’t help but to believe that God takes pleasure in watching our desires unfold. He knows the exact when, where and how of every event that will happen in our present and our future. As we wrestle with our unmet expectations, He is wrestling on our behalf to align the details up in perfect timing. Many times, we don’t receive our desire because the heart work required has not been completed. God will change our heart before He will change our circumstances. Some of the most precious gifts I have received were those I had to wait on the longest and work at the hardest. Looking back, I can see that God did a lot of heart work with me before He ever answered my prayers. In some cases He changed my heart of wanting certain things, and aligned my heart with His desires.

I’m unsure as to what your unanswered prayer is this morning and how long it has been your petition. But just like the advice I gave my daughter we must choose to trust God’s heart and pray for patience in the wait. God really does have amazing things for every one of us and He knows the perfect time to propose the perfect plan.