Wait on God

Wait on God

[Editor’s Note: This is a guest story by contributor Maria Drayton. I feel like, even though as Christians we are taught to “wait on God” and that He has His own plans and timing, there are literally never going to be too many devotionals or stories demonstrating waiting does, in fact, pay off!]

“It’s nice to meet you!”  I said, excited to finally have another young person working in my office.  She had seemed nice enough.  With many years of experience in the industry, I was hopeful that we would work well together.  The office only consisted of 4 people and that included her.  One day as I walked past her office, she even yelled out to me “Maria, I know you are the praying type, I am going to the doctor today to find out if I can have a baby.”  I was honored by her request so of course I prayed.

Within only a few weeks I noticed a change in her.  “Good morning,” I would dutifully say daily without response.  She began walking by me without a word.  At one point, I even asked her, “did I do something to you?”  “No!” she quickly snapped. So the office environment changed and I wish I could say for the better.  In an effort to bridge the gap, I even gave her a book of prayers and dedicated it to her without a “thank you.”  So I didn’t know what else to do, didn’t know what I had done, and hated going to work now (considering the other person in the office didn’t care for me either and they had rallied against me without my knowledge).

I prayed every morning before I went just to help me get through the day.  But things got worse.  I would try to ask her questions and if she answered back at all it would include an attitude.  I did everything possible to nullify the situation.  Construction was also happening right upstairs and it was a struggle to have a decent phone conversation.  My job depended on my daily calls.  Now as God would have it, I worked for a Christian whom regularly did mission trips to Africa and served as a deacon at his church.   I had gone to him and explained my plight with my co-worker but it fell on deaf ears, he never addressed it.  So all I had was prayer as my lifeline.

Months went by like this until I began to prepare my resume.  I wanted out.  But this day things would change.  I went into work, said my “good mornings” and proceeded to my office.  I tried to work but was unsuccessful due to the hammering going on directly on top of me (sounds coming thru the floor).

I sat and asked, “Lord, can I please go and ask my boss if I can work from home?”  “No” was His response.  I sat and continued to try to work.  And later asked again, “Lord, please can I talk to my boss about my situation?” 

“No” He responded again.

So I sat longer.  By this point it was almost the end of the day and my office door opened.  My boss peaked his head in, “On Monday, I have to talk to you about something,” he said.  It was Friday and I really didn’t want to ponder all weekend what he needed to discuss, so I asked him “Can we just talk now?”  “Sure”, he responded as he came in and closed the door behind him.  “What do you think about working from home and coming in only 2 days a week?”  I sat there and couldn’t believe what I was hearing.  All day I had asked the Holy Spirit if I could ask this EXACT THING!!!!  And now here my boss was asking me?  “YES!!!” was my answer.

Philippians 4:6, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”

Now things should have gotten better after that.  But they didn’t.  Now that I was out of the office the new girl decided to throw me under the bus more frequently.  But because I was working from home I knew nothing.  Until one day my boss called me while I was working from home to say, “It appears Marsha (the new girl) has gone to the Department of Banking and Insurance Industry on everyone at this office and our licenses are now being threatened.” 

I responded, “I’m not surprised at all.  I tried to tell you before that she couldn’t remain professional and that everything was personal with her.” 

Psalm 23: 5, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.”

He went on to explain, “Since you’ve been working from home you don’t know the half of how she’s tried to get you fired.”  “Again, I’m not surprised by any of this,” I replied.  What I realized is he was now finally seeing what I had been saying all along

1 Corinthians 3:13, “Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.”

“You know you tried to tell us a while ago but I just didn’t believe it,” He said as if regretting his unbelief in what I had told him long before.  Now that his license was under fire and he was being required in a deposition, he finally believed me.  I also was required in a deposition, but I had no fear because I knew the Lord was with me

2 Timothy 1:7, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”(KJV)

I even found myself reminding my boss of this scripture and told him “don’t worry.”

Matthew 6:34 (NIV), “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

So of course we were cleared by our depositions but she continued on and now was continuing to threaten my boss, so much that he had to get his own attorney involved and have her fired through the lawyer.

After she was fired, the office manager found the book of prayers I had given her in the bottom of her desk and gave it back to me.

Moral of the story, wait on God

Romans 12:19, “Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord.”

 

Maria DraytonMaria Drayton, originally from Seattle, Washington is a graduate of Washington State University and has a degree in Communications with an emphasis in Journalism through the Edward R. Murrow School of Communications. Maria currently resides in Deptford, New Jersey with her husband and son. With a passion for the Lord, she desires to bring a young, fresh, new look into intimacy with the Lord. Purchase Maria’s newly released book, “The King and I: Steps for Living in Today’s World Through Intimacy with the Lord” on her website: www.mariadrayton.com !

 

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