By Desiree Bustamante

We are not left alone while we wait for answers.

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking this Sound Cloud link. 

“My brothers and sisters, whenever you face various trials, consider it all joy, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance complete its work, so that you may be complete and whole, lacking in nothing.”
James 1:2-4 New Revised Standard Version

Waiting is hard, especially when we are waiting for our prayers to be answered. Ideally, we want to be patient and grow our faith while we wait, but if we feel alone or forgotten it’s difficult to not lose hope. We feel like the pumpkin in the field, worrying we were overlooked in the harvest or that we missed our chance to receive answers to our prayers.

But God promised that He will never leave you for any reason. He knows your anxious thoughts, your waffling faith and how hard it is to wait for His timing and His answers. As any pumpkin or squash grows, it must be connected to the vine to receive nutrients and life-giving water from the soil. It develops endurance and continues to grow through storms and heat, only if it stays connected to the vine.

We, too, must stay connected to God. Keep praying. Keep reading His word. Trust that, when you remain attached to the vine, you will lack nothing as you wait for Him to answer your prayers or give you guidance for the next stage of your life. You will grow in Christ, and He will use you to bear much fruit for His kingdom.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado