The Pause

He had a need for direction, a desire to understand the precise will of His God. With humility as his friend, the young man set his mind and heart toward understanding through fasting and prayer. He sought his Lord. And then he waited, and waited, and waited some more before the evidence of an answer became clear.

Daniel 10:12** AMP

 

Even though evidence wasn’t forthright and the pause was certainly strong, the Lord heard.  Daniel’s prayer was heard and help came. I love it!

 

When we humble ourselves before the Almighty, setting our minds and heart toward understanding, fasting and praying, He hears. The pause may be short or long before we see evidence that the Lord is listening, but the bottom line is that He hears and comes to our rescue.

Sometimes while fasting, the pause or silence of God can seem all too long. We deprive ourselves for a day, then two, and oftentimes more before hearing from God. It was like that this year for me. The adrenalin rush at the beginning was high. I knew the Lord was calling me to fast, and although our church was beginning theirs on the 9th, it was evident we, my family and I, were to start right away, as soon as the new year struck its first call. And so we did.

Then there was silence. Still, we continued on with a certain hope that He would hear.

The silence didn’t last.

The Lord, true to Himself, certainly heard.

We’re nearing the end of our fast, woot woot! Already I can tell you the voice of God has been so clear. In the book The Other Side of the Fence, A Lie Masquerading I share about not trusting God during one of my husband’s deployments, eventually landing in a depression. It wasn’t fun.

This past year has been a year of hip-hop dancing with trust. After writing about the depression situation, the need for trust rose to the surface. I desired to trust, but we weren’t close partners, more like singles dancing to the same high-energy tune as individuals. It was evident I needed to trust God in all of life, but for some unknown reason my buy-in wasn’t 100%.

During this fast, I can say the beat has slowed and the dance has now become a close, intimate slow-dance. Trust in the Lord and I are interlocked. He is reassuring me that it is OK to trust Him in all areas of life. The peace overwhelms and is welcomed. Waiting on the Lord has become a joy and a must. My heart knows well that anything outside His will suffices not.

Wow! What a joy it is to write this post. I pray it brings you encouragement as you draw near to God in humility, setting your heart and mind toward understanding through prayer and fasting. Lay it down, my friend, and pick up the things of God instead. He, the Almighty, is faithful in all things. The Lord will hear and He will answer regardless of the pause.

I’m looking forward to hearing all your great praise reports in 2012. It’s going to be a great year!