Monday Morning Memo: Rinse & Repeat

I shared in a life update at the beginning of March, that I had just had surgery on the Achilles tendon of my right foot.  It was the result of me tearing both of my Achilles tendons at the same time last August and after spending the winter in two boots, trying to get them to heal, it was determined that surgery would be needed.  Since the right ankle was deemed as the worst, it was the “lucky” recipient of the first surgery.

 

We had hoped to wait until this fall to operate on my left one, but due to increased pain, surgery was completed this past Tuesday.  Having the second surgery only four months after the first one wasn’t ideal, but if you know anything about my past health history…nothing rarely goes as planned.

 

The day of surgery, my doctor walked in and said, “Well LuAnn, it’s just rinse and repeat.  What we did last time, is what I plan to do again today”.  And he was right.  This operation was pretty much like the last one, except this one had some extra bursitis to clean out.  So now I have begun another year-long recovery.  If you’ve ever had this type of surgery, you know the word “fun” is rarely used to describe these days.

 

I’ll be honest, during these past months I have prayed and prayed and prayed, trying to find out why God has allowed me to go through this time of pain and waiting…but I’ve heard lots of silence.  No writing in the sky…no lightbulb moment…no big spiritual revelations.  The only thing I have sensed is Him saying, “Not your will LuAnn, but Mine”.   I guess that was an answer…but not the one I wanted.

 

How do you do when the Lord’s answer is “wait”?  Hopefully you are better than me because I wouldn’t win an award for waiting patiently.  I always feel like action is necessary to follow His will and so patiently waiting, while I recover, is just a huge waste of time.  I think I often feel like the Lord needs my help to get something accomplished and I’m probably mistaken about that.  He needs my obedience…He doesn’t really need my help.  But He does allow me the privilege of having a role in seeing something come to fruition…because He loves me that much.  

 

It’s similar to how it was when our children were growing up.  There were many tasks around the house which could be accomplished easier and much quicker if I just did them myself.  I didn’t need any help from them to get certain jobs done, but because I loved them and wanted a closer relationship with them, I would sometimes ask them to help me.  Those times brought us closer as we worked side by side to see our task completed.  It’s the same way with our Jesus.  He is more than capable of doing everything himself, but because He wants a closer relationship with us, He offers us opportunities to work side by side with Him.  What a privilege!

 

In Appointed to Bear Fruit, I read these words, “We must be willing at every moment to surrender to His will. The Father is at work, through the Spirit, to bring the completed work of Christ to the world. He knows where workers are needed and sends them to these places. Even though it may seem that going there will lead to financial loss or greater family struggles, we are to rejoice because we have confidence in what the Father is doing. With all humility, we should accept the portion which God has prepared for us. Glorify His name by believing His promises for your spouse and children. No matter what happens, we can have complete confidence that the Father is directing our lives, and great joy can be found in submitting to His will. Nothing else will ever bring the true satisfaction that our souls are longing for”.

 

Yes, it comes down to surrendering to His will in every moment and I’m pretty sure that means every moment of waiting.  Maybe during this time, He has more pruning to do in me, so I am prepared for whatever lies ahead.  Ouch.  That’s a scary thought J

 

Are you also in a time of waiting?  Do you feel like what you are going through is just another time of “rinse and repeat”?  If so, you and I can have complete confidence knowing that He is working out His perfect plan behind the scenes.  And when everything is in place…at just the right time…He will invite us to work with Him, side by side, to see His plan come to fruition.  For now, we will have joy, knowing that even as we wait, He will never leave our side!

 

But Jesus replied, “My Father is always working, 

and so am I.”

John 5:17