How God Gives Opportunities To Be Patient In The Waiting Season

Two years ago, I moved back to California with my family. When God called us to move out of state, we were hopeful and expectant of our future. The day the Lord told us to move back, we knew He was telling us where our home was.

God did a lot of teaching and refining in my heart while living outside of California. He taught me to be patient, and I am grateful for the trials. Each obstacle I faced, built my faith and strengthened my endurance in the waiting season. God was about to use the faith and endurance I had and take us down a new path where I would need to trust Him, be patient, and be diligent.

How I learned to Be Patient In The Waiting Season

The journey God took us on to find our new home in California was nothing short of a miracle. God’s hand of protection and provision was on my family, and it was palpable. As swiftly as God was moving in our lives, we were rapidly approaching a season where I learned to be patient.

The Lord blessed us with an older house that needed to be remodeled. I was excited to take on the challenge of designing my home exactly how I wanted it. But anyone who has ever lived through a home remodel knows that things don’t always go as planned. For the last 15 months, I have been operating our home without sinks and without a running kitchen.

Here are two things that got me through 15 months of no kitchen:

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My Go-To Small Kitchen Appliance

Simplified Meal Planning

The Opportunity God Gave Me To Be Patient

The opportunity God gave me was to be patient and wait on His timing. Just as the Israelites waited on God to move in the desert (Exodus 40:36-37), I felt like I was moving when God moved and waiting when He stood still. God is never early, nor is He ever late. When God moves, He is always right on time. God was teaching me to trust him.

Of course, it would be much more comfortable for things to be done in my timing. But if I were to have it my way, I would miss out on the blessings God has in store for me. I would also lose the character building He has in mind for me.

As we moved along in remodeling our home, we were reaching the end of our budget. When the money ran out, the last big projects of getting countertops and moving one gas line was put on hold.

• Our sinks couldn’t be put in without countertops.
• The gas line sat too high for my oven to be installed.

So, here we waited…

My Character Was Built in Construction

I am very fortunate that I have a husband who is both very skilled and handy around the house. There isn’t anything in our home that he did not build himself. My father-in-law and my husband did all the demo work on the house. When it came to the finishes, my husband built all the cabinetry exact to the designs I drew up for both the kitchen and the bathrooms.

However, this isn’t a television show and the work didn’t get done in a thirty minute episode. Living in construction has been character building, and is how I learned to live patiently. I had to patiently wait as my husband was doing everything in his power to finish the house. He has a full time job on top of building a house for us to live in.

This was hard living, and I needed to be patient. I had to learn to be patient with my kids as they tried to find normalcy in chaotic living. As I was trying to adapt, I needed to find new ways to accomplish tasks around the house. And I needed to be patient with how long things were taking because my husband only has so much time in his days.

I Am Not The First

We were not living in what most might call a normal situation. But I do know, we are not the only ones to have ever gone through a long, drawn-out home renovation. People can adapt to their situations and this is how I adapted to change.

First, I got myself organized by writing it down. In another post, I recommended my favorite home planner for getting your home organized. Here is the link to go read about The Ultimate Home Planner.

How I Adapted To Live With Less

After I organized my plan, I searched for the best way to cook meals for my family. I was set on having a system that would cut down on dishes from preparing meals. The Ninja Foodi is multi-purpose with a sauté function, baking option, and a slow cook feature. This is the exact model I chose because I could do everything I needed in one pot.

Washing dishes felt like double duty. I took the concept of how I do dishes when we go camping and put it into practice here at home. During the warm summer months, I set up a table in the backyard with two buckets to wash dishes. I then set the dishes out to dry in the warm sun.

Having my dish washing station outside served two purposes. First, it got me out of the house where all the construction is. Second, I was able to watch my kids while they swam in the pool. An added benefit was the amazing tan I was able to get. Who ever thought of getting a tan while washing dishes?

I knew I was limited with my cooking appliances, so I needed recipes that were diverse. My husband can live on the same food each meal and be fine. My kids and myself need to be able to switch things up.

This Slow Cooker Recipe Box gave me and the kids options! You can get your own by using my link to take you directly to it through Amazon. Not only does this box have 72 different slow cooker recipes, but we found new favorites. One recipe my kids loved was the crock pot ribs recipe. You read that right. Ribs. In a crockpot!

They Say, “Never Pray For Patience.”

15 months of living on slow cooker meals not only taught me patience, but gave me a new perspective. I have been told several times, “Never pray for patience.” They say this because God doesn’t just give you an overwhelming desire to be patient. When you ask for patience, He gives you opportunities to practice being patient.

Learning to be patient requires persistent effort through enduring work. God was giving me plenty to practice patience with. Eventually I didn’t want to just be patient.

The past two months or so, I started to ask for prayer in a different area of my heart. I asked friends to pray that I might find joy and peace in the work God has for me. Life could always be worse. But if my joy is rooted in Christ, No one or no situation can take that from me.

A Change Of Heart

In the two years being back in California, I have grown so much. I went from a fully functional house to a “glamping” situation for more than a year. God revealed that I am strong in Him (Ephesians 6:10). “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength” (Philipians 4:13). And how I needed His strength to carry this load.

I am capable of adapting to my situation and thriving in it. God drew me closer to himself and pointed me towards having joy no matter what is in front of me. Our home still has a long way to go before it is fully functional. But the progress we recently made with getting a sink and having a stove put in two days ago is a testament to God’s goodness.

As my friend Leah pointed out the other night, “We have to find JOY in the JOurneY. If we take out the JO____Y all we’re left with is an urne.” I won’t let my journey kill my joy. I am going to keep my joy firmly planted in Christ Jesus.

My Two Kitchen Hack Recommendations