How Long Will It Be

I've been thinking and praying about how to write this post.  It has been a couple of years of walking in a life disrupted with life things!  Do you have that?

Listening to church online today since we have a couple of coughing, sore throat kids I heard the title of what this post should be!  How long will it be?  How long will it be Lord?

Life keeps coming.  Life keeps coming faster, harder, deeper.  Life is stressful, it is messy, it is not what we desire, and yet...when it gets this way, what will we do?

Wrestling through this with continued issues of job stresses and job changes, several moves in 11 months with another one on its way in a few weeks, house that won't sell, father and father-in-law that ended up seriously ill, walking with my father as he was ushered into heaven, car issues, house issues, teen issues, family issues, and now...some more interesting house issues.  Oh how times you feel...
...are YOU HERE God?
...are you LISTENING God?
...do you SEE what is happening, Lord?
...Will you STOP this?

To hear God say to me...
...WHAT will YOU do?
...How long will you look to Me?

To hear in my head my plea is with an anxious heart but to hear Him respond in a calm and peaceful voice..."are you looking to me?  Or are you looking at your circumstances?"

I may not like what is happening but I cannot deny that when I see and know who God is...how could I not continue to look to Him?  When I know what He did for my sins how can I not live for Him...even in the midst of difficulty?  And can I really call what I/we are walking through difficulty?  In light of all that is happening around the world or that which has happened to other men and women who have served the Lord in areas that have persecuted them for their faith, how can I give up so easily?  I desire to be a woman that lives her life pointing others to Christ in adversity.  Oh how my little domestic life issues are so trivial to so many others.

I also have to admit that although it has been tough I don't think I/we would have gone to prayer as much as we have the past couple of years without the struggle.  Our life is blessed in the midst of issues.  Even the other day as a major house  issue came up we could gather together as a family in the middle of our living room, in the middle of the day, huddled together, hand on shoulders, 10 people from 47 - 5yrs,  in community and call out to the Lord.  Listening to those kids praise the Lord for providing us a home.  Listening as the kids praised him for providing 2 homes!  (even I had not put together he didn't provide just a home...he provided 2 homes!) Knowing that in His faithfulness he will provide a 3rd home too.  Praising Him for what He has done and praising Him for what He will do.  Often we see with limited eyes.  It is a reminder that when we look through our eyes how limited our vision can be and when we look through our faith eyes...how much more we can see!  

So how long will it be Lord?

However long you ask us to walk this path, we are yours Lord!

You are our Lord today, tomorrow, and forever more!

It may be tough, we may not like it, but our chains are gone Lord and your Mercy Reigns!  It doesn't take long to go from feeling the weight of the chains to the freedom of peace and His amazing love!  Lord, continue to help us stay a praying family!  Go before us, walk with us, lead us to where we are to be!  We are yours Lord!

How long will it be?  However long He asks us to walk!