For Such a Time as This

For Such a Time as This by Just a Girl and Her Blog

Happy Wednesday, friends! It’s time for another edition of “Abby bares her soul all over the pages of her blog!” 😀 I haven’t done one of these for a while, so if you’re new here and were just looking for a fun DIY project, may I suggest Monday’s post? Or if you’re looking for ways to organize your life, maybe check out this and this? But if you can handle a dose of real life today, keep on reading!

Do you ever just feel restless? For several months now I have felt like I’m waiting for something. I don’t even know what it is; I’ve just had this feeling of anticipation that won’t go away. For so long, I always knew what the next thing would be… after high school I’d go to college, then get a job, get married, have kids, buy a house… I’ve done all that. So now what? The “fixer” part of me is constantly saying, “Let’s do something about this feeling. Whatever it’s about, let’s make it happen!”

“Maybe it’s buying a new house, ” I thought at one point. So I started obsessively looking at houses in our area on a real estate app, searching for “the one.” But different circumstances in our lives seem to be pointing to staying here, at least for the moment.

“Maybe something is going to happen with Donnie’s job,” was my next thought. He’s in oil and gas where regulations are always changing and there are always deadlines, deadlines, deadlines! But everything has stayed pretty normal {busy, but normal} there. So what is it? Why do I have this feeling of anticipation that I can’t seem to shake?

I have asked God over and over, “What are You doing right now? What are we supposed to be doing right now? What is all of this waiting about?” And during this entire time I have continually been drawn back to the story of Esther in the Bible.

If you’re not familiar with it, here’s a quick rundown: King Xerxes needs a queen, so he gathers all of the eligible women in his kingdom and brings them to the palace for a beauty pageant of sorts, the “winner” of which will be the next queen. Esther, who is beautiful and loved by everyone, catches the king’s eye and is made queen. Some time later, the king’s evil right hand man, Haman, convinces the king that something needs to be done about the Jews. The king, trusting Haman, agrees and a decree is sent out declaring a date for the annihilation of the Jewish people. What neither Haman nor the king know is that Esther is a Jew. Her cousin and guardian Mordecai comes to the palace gate in mourning, and when Esther sees him, she sends one of her servants out to find out what has happened. Mordecai tells the servant about the decree and has him relay the message to Esther that she must go to the king and ask him to save the Jews from this terrible fate. One problem: the king hasn’t sent for Esther in over a month, and if she goes to him without being called and he does not extend his scepter to her, she will be killed immediately. She reminds Mordecai of this and his response is what I keep coming back to over and over again. He says, “And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?”

For such a time as this. Now I’m no queen or anything like that, but I firmly believe that God orchestrates our circumstances for His glory, even if they don’t make sense to us at the time. So what if I’m where I am at this exact moment for such a time as this? What if all of the waiting, seeking, wondering is for one moment that God has perfectly orchestrated? While she was going about her day-to-day activities, Esther had no way of knowing that she was going to be the person to save her people, but when the Jews needed someone to intervene on their behalf, it was Esther who God had placed in the exact right position at the exact right time. (By the way– spoiler alert– the king extends his scepter to her, she reveals Haman’s plot, Haman is killed and the Jews are saved. Woohoo!)

Now our “moment” may not be that big. In fact, we may not even be aware of it when it happens. God can use us in ways and orchestrate circumstances and we may never know the impact we’ve had on someone. But I do know this: even if I’m totally unaware of it, I don’t want to miss it. If God wants to use me in a certain way, I want to be ready and available to Him for that to happen.

So what do I do with this feeling of anticipation? What do I do while I’m waiting? I trust God. I trust in His promise that He will never leave me or forsake me. I look for ways to serve Him and to be His hands and feet to others around me. I seek Him. And you know, sometimes the seeking is the thing. I am so eager for some big end result, but God has a lot to do with me while I’m waiting, seeking. He has a lot of growing to do in me. So maybe the seeking and the trusting is the whole point, and if that’s how God wants to grow me and use me to further His Kingdom then I’ll be here, waiting, for such a time as this.

Delightful Sign Off

25 Comments

  1. Holly @ Coconutheadsurvivalguide says:

    To my dearest Queen Abby – I am with you 100%. I know that God has blessed me in His own weird way that I don’t understand and I too am trying to figure out what to do with it. I do know that he introduced the two of us for a greater purpose… two random girls with normal and ordinary lives to extra ordinary things over our blogs because we both have voices and want to share our story. Whether God has us working separate, together, or in parallel, I know there is something great and big out there with HIS name ALL.OVER.IT. He has your destiny in His hands. Be still and listen. Blessings and hugs to you my friend, Queen Holly

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you so much for your sweet words and for sharing your wisdom, Holly! I always admire your perspective! Hope you have a wonderful weekend, my friend!

      ~Abby =)

  2. Ashley @ 3 Little Greenwoods says:

    Preach it, girlfriend! I am a true believer that God orchestrates our lives to show His true purpose. Thanks for the reminder!

    ~ Ashley

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you so much, friend! Amen to that! Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

      ~Abby =)

  3. I know exactly how you feel, Abby. As a Mom who is a little bit farther along in the parenting journey, let me encourage you to not let that restlessness cause you to not savor where you are now. Yes, be ready to take a leap of faith when He calls you to that, but don’t miss taking those small, daily steps of obedience just because you’re waiting for that big leap!

    I so have to remind myself to be faithful in the daily mundane-ness because I’m a fixer and a dreamer and there are always so many things that I feel are more important or more flashy (although I’d probably not admit out loud that’s what I’m looking for!), but I doubt seriously that Esther knew that we’d be admiring her thousands of years later. She probably just felt like she was doing what was necessary for that day and God blessed her faithfulness immensely.

    Thanks so much for the reminder today! I needed it! Blessings!!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you so much for your words of wisdom, Christy! What a great perspective and reminder! You’re right– it is so easy to always be thinking “What’s next?” and forget to enjoy the phase you’re in! Hope you have a wonderful weekend, my friend!

      ~Abby =)

  4. Kim {Pinspired Home} says:

    Of all the Bible stories, Esther is my favorite! (Although I also really, really like the story of Joseph) 🙂
    What a great reminder, Abby! Thanks for being brave enough to bare your soul!
    xoxo 🙂

    1. justagirlabby says:

      I love Esther, too! I did Beth Moore’s study of Esther with a group of girls a few years ago and have been totally hooked ever since! Hope you have a wonderful weekend, my friend!

      ~Abby =)

  5. Chiyo smith says:

    Amen Abby. Retired believer, wife of 43 years, mom of four, mother in law to four, Grammy to seven, active servant in Inspire Church Hawaii, neighbor, friend–thanks for sharing that. We are all called to be the one God has chosen. My life will look different than anyone else’s and it’s all good. We just need to be faithful in all things, big or little, blessing others ‘in Jesus name’. Bless You.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Wow! What a wonderful testimony it seems you have! So many blessings! Thank you so much for your encouragement and words of wisdom! God is so good!

      ~Abby =)

  6. Beautiful…thanks for that.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you so much, Jessica! Have a wonderful weekend!

      ~Abby =)

  7. Love it! I totally agree. Do the next thing is a saying I love. I co-facilitate a women’s crisis group and one of the leaders will ask a woman in crisis what is the last thing God told her to do. Sometimes they don’t remember. You can never go wrong with doing the next thing.

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you so much for stopping by and for your sweet words, Laurie! Have a great weekend!

      ~Abby =)

  8. Thank you Abbey for sharing. I love the story of Esther and such a great reminder. I know at times we all feel anxious, or at least I do. How could we not? with pinterest and blogs showing us every recipe and every way to make our houses more beautiful, more organized and more perfect. We are always connected with Instagram, facebook, twitter you get the idea. Sometimes we need to take a breath and enjoy what it right in front of us. You have two beautiful boys enjoy every moment with them, Relish every hug, every smile and even every tantrum 🙂 Perhaps right now this is what God has in mind for you. This is a BIG and perhaps this is it and in seeking something else you are missing it.. Blessings

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Absolutely! Sometimes I think this “anticipation” feeling helps me to see and notice things that I wouldn’t otherwise. As my outdoorsman dad would say, “I have my huntin’ eyes on,” looking for God at work in the day to day things that I would normally overlook or take for granted! 😀 Thanks so much for stopping by, my friend! Have a wonderful weekend!

      ~Abby =)

  9. Great post, Abbey! I feel like I (my entire family) just finished a crazy time of just trusting. We prayed forever and finally made the decision to move back to our home state of Indiana to be closer to family. LOOOONG story short, we lived there for 5 months and then moved right back to NM. We are back in our same house, same job for my husband, same same same. Talk about asking God lots of questions. Sometimes God allows changes and sometime He allows silence. They are both hard in different ways. Thank you for sharing this about yourself. =)

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thanks so much for sharing your story, Amy! It’s funny because one of the previous times I remember having this feeling of anticipation we were living in Arizona and, like you, prayed for a long time before moving back home to PA. If it were up to me, we would have moved MONTHS earlier, but the God’s timing ended up being perfect, as it always is. It is so hard to see what He’s doing when you’re in the midst of the situation, though. (And sometimes even after, too!) I guess that’s why it’s called faith, huh?! I’ve seen Him at work enough times to know that He knows better than me, so I certainly trust in that! Hope you have a wonderful weekend, my friend!

      ~Abby =)

  10. Hi Abby! It was so refreshing to read your post this morning! I love the story of Esther, so thanks for the recap. 🙂 From a woman who has been through the highs and lows of life, I encourage you to relish in this ‘calmness’. You have the right attitude! 🙂
    Blessings,
    Gina @ Gina’s Craft Corner

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you so much, Gina! That really means a lot! I love Esther’s story too. God is amazing! Have a wonderful weekend!

      ~Abby =)

  11. Love this. I so needed to read this right now. 🙂

    1. justagirlabby says:

      Thank you, Amy! Hooray for good timing! 😀 Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

      ~Abby =)

  12. Kelly @ View Along the Way says:

    I just love your heart.

    And I know exactly what you mean. When I get that restless feeling, for me, it’s usually because I feel like we should probably sell all our stuff and move to africa as missionaries — just do something BIG! — and I want God to give us some concrete, major direction like that, but obviously that’s not what he has right now. For me it’s usually a feeling that I’m wasting time and not serving “enough,” but sometimes He just wants me here, serving my family by being their mom.

    Great post, my friend!

    1. justagirlabby says:

      I so hear you! I struggle with that same thing! Especially because my parents were/are in full time ministry, I feel like because I’m not (at least “officially” like they are) that I’m not doing enough or something. {Though I know God calls people into ministry in other ways than working for a church or mission, but still I feel the guilt sometimes!}
      I have also told God before that I think it would be great if he could pass out fortune cookies with messages telling us specifically what we are supposed to do next, but he hasn’t taken me up on that idea yet, and I have no idea why… 😉 Thank you so much for stopping by and for your sweet words, my friend! Have a wonderful weekend!

      ~Abby =)

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