Between the Earning and the Yearning
We often move in a rhythm of earning and yearning. We work, plan, and try to make the best choices we can. Yet beneath it all, there’s a quiet longing that doesn’t go away. A sense that something is missing. Or a hope for more?
Sometimes we look for provision, other times for clarity or peace in the middle of a confusing season. And when answers don’t come when we expect, it’s easy to think something is off, or worse, that something is wrong with us. But maybe time itself isn’t the problem. Maybe the delay is an invitation to trust God, to see beyond urgency.
We’re all waiting for something... an open door, a change, a sense of direction. There’s nothing wrong with wanting, but often we tie our peace to outcomes. We tell ourselves, once this happens, then we’ll rest. Then we’ll feel okay. Yet waiting reshapes us. It teaches us to lean on God, to look deeper than the surface of our desires. It reminds us that what we truly long for cannot be found in this world alone.
God doesn’t just answer prayers. He develops people. When we ask for peace, He often gives us opportunities to practice it. When we seek wisdom, He brings experiences that stretch our thinking. When we ask for purpose, He rarely hands us a roadmap. Instead, He walks with us step by step. God's timing is not only about what we receive, but about becoming the person He wants us to be.
Between the earning and the yearning is the becoming.
“I have refined you, but not as silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering.” — Isaiah 48:10
We want to know we’re seen. That what we need will come at the right time. That our steps, even when uncertain, are not wasted. And here is where God gives us assurance. He knows exactly what we need and when we need it. He’s not guessing. He’s not late. His ways are higher, and His love runs deeper than any lack we feel right now.
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.” — Isaiah 43:2
Get the Waters Graphic Tee here.
We go through seasons in life that may not look like what we hoped for. It may feel unproductive, uncertain, or heavy. But waiting is not wasted when it draws us closer to Him. We are not overlooked, we are being shaped. And perhaps the longing itself is a clue that what we’re truly waiting for goes beyond the outcomes. It may be pointing us toward God Himself, the only one who can satisfy.
No matter what we gain or lose, Christ is enough. More than the blessings, more than the struggles.
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” — 2 Corinthians 12:9
We don’t need to earn what we already have in Him. And we don’t need to chase what He has not yet given. In His time, everything will come together in a way we could never have planned, but exactly as He intended.