When you are answering the door and praying that the date you are about to go on is not terrific, just tolerable, call me - we can talk. When you are taking regular hiatuses from dating to maintain sanity and some semblance of hope, call me - we can talk. When you are hearing your friends, at the end of every relationship you’ve been in, say, “I’ve never heard of this happening before?!” or “Have you ever considered writing a book?” call me - we can talk.
But until then, take my word for it… your stories will not shake me, frazzle me, or rock my boat. Been there, done that, gotten drinks with… him.
I don’t know what God is preparing me for, but I have recently found myself asking Him if we can make this little exercise, that the world refers to as dating, into two-a-days so as to speed up the process…
He has yet to get back to me.
So, again, I’m not saying it’s bad, but I'm saying it ain’t easy. I’m saying that I get tired - I get discouraged - I get frustrated - I get fearful. Maybe you're there too. It’s ok, my dear, you’re human, you’re female and, if you’re anything like me, you hate unanswered questions.
We were never taught to live with questions… we were always taught to seek answers. Just think about it - when was “I don’t know” ever esteemed as the answer to a question? And yet, the older I get, the more I see that that is exactly how the Lord commands us to live.
Trust me, I GET your frustration… there have been times in my life when I thought, “If I hear the word “wait” one more time, I really, truly, quite honestly, might lose my ever loving mind.” But, girlfriend, you better pull up a seat and get comfortable because the thing about our dear Lord is He isn’t on our timetable. He isn't worried that this will be the fifth Saturday night in a row that you have sat at home and needle pointed while watching a chick-flick that you have memorized. He doesn’t appear to be phased by the fact that you could outfit an army with the number of bridesmaid’s dresses that you own. He doesn't seem to fret over the fact that this will be your tenth bad date in a row. And He isn't surprised that the candles on your cake could now warm a small country. What He cares about is your soul and His glory - period.
So, it is His way or His way. Psalm 115:3 states that “our God is in the Heavens and He does whatever pleases Him.” Trust me - it’s true - we might as well get used to it.
But while we’re getting used to it, let me remind you how much He cares about you. Baby girl, He loves you. He loves you so, so very much. Do not forget that we love only because He first loved us (1 John 4:19)… before you had done anything right or wrong… before you feel you had earned or unearned any type of affection… He veraciously loved you as much as He will ever love you. The entire Bible, in fact, is His plan to reconcile you with Him. He LOVES you. He loved you first - He will always love you best.
And He gets you because, well, He made you! I am far from perfect, but I am perfectly made by a flawless Father, who knew every day before there was one, who knows every hair that is on my head, who knows every quirk, and every good and terrible thing that I have done (Psalm 139) He gets me - He gets you. (And I think we can both admit that that is no small feat)
Plus He has a plan for you (Jeremiah 29:11) and a specific purpose for the place that you are at the time that you are there (Acts 17:26).
He is not messing around with your life or with your heart.
I don’t know who has let you down. But I promise you one thing, God won’t… He will not fail you. (Joshua 1:5)
What else do I know…? Well, that I’ll reveal over time, with a few funny anecdotes here and there. But for today, let me leave you with one thing that I am quickly learning: Our man Paul might have been on to something when he said in 1 Corinthians 2:2, "for I choose to know nothing… except Christ and Him crucified."
See, it would be great if I could tell you today why you’ve gone through what you’ve gone through or why you are where you are, or if I could tell you how it’s going to get better or what good is going to come from it, or where your dream guy is hiding or when he is going to arrive. It would be amazing if I could paint a really pretty picture of how all the puzzle pieces of your life and of mine will one day fit together, but I can’t.
I can only tell you the Who and that is Christ. He will show up. In fact, He is already here - already working - already orchestrating - already comforting. Lean on Him - run to Him - wait for Him.
Elisabeth Elliot has a quote that I come back to often, “I do know that waiting on God requires the willingness to bear uncertainty, to carry within oneself the unanswered question, lifting the heart to God about it whenever it intrudes upon one’s thoughts”
So, that’s what I know… and what I am choosing to un-know is everything else.
I don’t know if you can tell, but I’m a blonde. There has long been a saying (supposedly originated from a Clairol ad in the 1940s) that blondes have more fun. Having always been one myself I can’t attest to the validity of that statement, but I do wonder if it has anything to do with another well known stereotype - that blondes are just… well, dumb.
Now stick with me, all you blondes out there… if we just quit trying to figure everything out - if we really surrendered - if we really trusted that God would grant us the wisdom that we would need at the moment that we would need it - wouldn’t this life be a lot more fun?? Now, I don’t think this is where Paul was originally going with his verse, but I don’t think He’ll mind. Because see, if we really played dumb (let’s face it, compared to Christ, we are) - if we really became “blonde” to all concerns other than Christ and Him crucified - if we really trusted the Originator and Orchestrator of our faith to drive this thing called our lives - we could find ourselves on the most thrilling and exciting of rides.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve had enough of me in the driver’s seat. I’m ready to take my hope (and my highlights) out for a spin and see what the Who can do.
Anyone coming with me??
-Biblically Blonde
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