Struggling to Understand

So. You're on God's adventure. You've said, "I know you want me on this adventure, Lord. But...now what?"

I feel like that is a question we always ask. What's our next step? Why are we on this journey if we don't even know where He is leading?

Again, I draw on Bilbo. Picture the scene from the movie where the Company has set up camp for the night in the old abandoned farm house. Gandalf, in a huff at Thorin, has gone off for a moment of great counsel. (With himself of course.)

Suddenly, as Bilbo takes Fili and Kili their supper, two of the horses are mysteriously missing. In that moment Bilbo must make a choice: will he help Fili and Kili with the horses and risk injury from giant trolls? Or head quietly back to the camp without another word?

Of course he does help them and ends up getting himself and the whole Company in a pickle. 

I bet when Bilbo was standing there, these thoughts were going through his head. 
 Oh boy. I have to actually play the burglar Gandalf made me up to be. I'm not ready for this decision. Where is Gandalf when I need him? He put me here, why isn't he helping me? 

I often feel like Bilbo. Thrust into a conundrum with out the help of my "Gandalf". Where is God anyways when I need him? Why isn't He making clear the next step?

Well, he's a lot like Galadriel in the third movie. Gandalf, is in the heart of Dol Guldur. Near death, he calls on the elven maid to asist him. She said at Rivendal, that if he called on her, she would come. And come Galadriel does, helping to defeat the Nazguls and saving Gandalf. 

God is a lot like that. He is simply waiting for us to call on him. Like it says in Matthew 7:7  "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." (KJV)

God is simply waiting for us to call on him. Unlike Gandalf, God doesn't take breaks from our adventure. He is with us every step of the way. He is guiding our step and helping us to overcome every hurtle in our way. 

Proverbs 3:5-6 says, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your path straight." (emphasis added)
 God knows our struggles. He wants to come in and help us if we ask.  He wants to make our way clear. We need to simple trust him and his plan. 

I'm not perfect, okay? I have been struggling with this very thing all day today. I don't understand why God is putting my family through this awful move or why he is making it so hard. But I do know I am called to be right here even when I feel like screaming and kicking and killing everyone in my family. I know I need his strength. And I know I need to ask for it. If you're struggling with anything right now, please join me in the prayer below. The attitude of you're heart is the most important thing. Ask God, and he will help you see.

God, help me to trust you even when I don't understand why this is happening. Help me to be an example of you even when I'm stressed and uncomfortable. Lord, your ways are perfect. Help me to trust you in everything all the time.

Amen.