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When I turned 60, I did some soul searching. I clearly hadn’t achieved all I could or should have in my life so far. Was I a failure? Give me a minute before I answer that.
I’d gone through some changes recently and was at a place both geographically and career-wise that was not what I had in mind. I wasn’t unhappy, but I wasn’t entirely pleased with my circumstances either. I felt like I was becalmed at sea, no wind in my sails, monotonous stretches of ocean in all directions. The horizon was in sight, but that didn’t help. I couldn’t decide which point on the horizon to aim for, and even if I could, I had no means to propel myself towards it. What and where was my purpose in life?
For all my adult life, I had dedicated myself to achieving what I understood to be God’s purpose for me. I had thought I had a fairly good idea of what this was, but now all bets were off. I had primed myself for great things, but now great things seemed like just a pipe dream.
As I reflected on my life and the lives of others, I realized that there are some people who most of us can agree were great—not necessarily because we approve of everything they said and did, but because they had an impact; in some objective way their lives and achievements were great. But were these relative few the only ones who had fulfilled their destinies? For that matter, is there any such thing as destiny? Are our lives supposed to be fulfilling in themselves? Are we supposed to be satisfied at the end of it all? Is that the point? Or is there something else at work here?
Saint Paul wrote, “If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied” (1 Corinthians 15:19). When I meditated on this verse in the past, I had looked at it from Paul’s first-century perspective. We all know that there was much persecution directed at the first Christians, to whom Paul was writing. He meant to encourage them that their brief lives here were not the final word or the whole story.
Life is often compared with school. I can remember grumbling along with many of my classmates about being stuck in school when we wanted to get on with our lives. But school wasn’t meant to be the culmination of our lives. It wasn’t our destiny. It was merely a training ground, an opportunity to garner knowledge and skills that we could apply later.
This life is only a stage. Yes, we are to gain all we can from it, but we don’t have to worry that we have somehow missed our destiny if all we have to show are some scars and hard-won wisdom.
What, then, are we supposed to accomplish here? What does God want or expect from us in this life? What is our purpose? This is how Solomon stated it: “Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind” (Ecclesiastes 12:13).
We are works in progress, but if we can look at ourselves in the mirror and honestly say that we are trying to live our lives that way, then we are doing what we are supposed to be doing. Fulfilling this is our destiny.—Phillip Lynch
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You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For, “In just a little while, he who is coming will come and will not delay.”—Hebrews 10:36–37
If you’ve been praying for something in your church—or in your own heart—and God seems silent, remember this:
Delay is not denial.
Just because the answer hasn’t come yet doesn’t mean God isn’t listening. It simply means not yet.
Part of spiritual maturity is learning the difference between no and not yet. Between a closed door and a delayed one. …
God’s delay is often a test—not to expose weakness, but to build endurance. Anyone can wait once. Faith grows when you keep trusting through the fourth, fifth, and fiftieth time.
Maybe you’ve prayed for revival and haven’t seen fruit.
Maybe you’ve asked God to heal division in your church or restore a relationship that’s still fractured.
Maybe you’ve carried a vision that hasn’t yet come to life. In those seasons, God isn’t ignoring you. He’s growing you.
Testing reveals what’s really inside—and it reminds you of who stands beside you. God uses waiting to deepen your dependence, to remind you that ministry runs on his timetable, not yours.
You may feel weary or even close to giving up. But you’re not finished—and God isn’t either.
His promise still stands.
You can stay with it longer because God is with you. He will give you the strength to press on when your own strength runs out.
Remember, you’re never a failure until you quit. Stay faithful in the waiting. The One who called you will come through—in his perfect time.—Pastors.com1
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Most people understand hope as wishful thinking, as in “I hope something will happen.” This is not what the Bible means by hope. The biblical definition of hope is “confident expectation.” Hope is a firm assurance regarding things that are unclear and unknown (Romans 8:24–25; Hebrews 11:1, 7). Hope is a fundamental component of the life of the righteous (Proverbs 23:18). … The righteous who trust or put their hope in God will be helped (Psalm 28:7), and they will not be confounded, put to shame, or disappointed (Isaiah 49:23). The righteous, who have this trustful hope in God, have a general confidence in God’s protection and help (Jeremiah 29:11) and are free from fear and anxiety (Psalm 46:2–3). …
Hope is produced by endurance through suffering (Romans 5:2–5). … Trustworthy promises from God give us hope (Hebrews 6:18–19), and we may boast in this hope (Hebrews 3:6) and exhibit great boldness in our faith (2 Corinthians 3:12). … Along with faith and love, hope is an enduring virtue of the Christian life (1 Corinthians 13:13), and love springs from hope (Colossians 1:4–5). Hope produces joy and peace in believers through the power of the Spirit (Romans 12:12; 15:13).—Got Questions2
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“This wasn’t part of the plan.”
I whispered those words in a hotel room in the middle of China. As my husband and I held our newly adopted daughter, we realized that her physical needs were much more severe than we had originally thought.
I didn’t understand what God was doing. I didn’t feel prepared to be a mother to a child with special needs. Suddenly, my story had shifted. There were numerous questions but no answers.
Will she go to school?
Who will take care of her after I am gone?
Can I really do this?
As a planner, I love answers because I want to prepare. But through our daughter’s adoption, God taught me that certainty cannot be found in my plans or in predicting the future. Even now, He is still teaching me—because when my story shifts, I’m often quick to question God’s goodness.
Our daughter has thrived these past several years, but some aspects of her future are still unknown. Will she ever live on her own? What kind of care will she need three years from now, or 10, or 20? Despite uncertainty, God’s goodness has never left her or our family, and I know it never will.
Your life has probably shifted over the years too. Maybe you just want to know what to expect. But while I can’t tell you what your future looks like, I can tell you who holds your future.
The story of Moses shows us how God’s goodness isn’t necessarily tied to our plans but to His glory. Before heading toward the promised land with the Israelites, Moses said to God, “Please show me your glory” (Exodus 33:18). God responded, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The LORD’” (Exodus 33:19).
God’s glory is tied to His goodness, and God’s goodness is tied to His name, which reveals His character. Moses had met this Lord at the burning bush (Exodus 3:15), and even through plagues and wilderness wandering, God continued to be good to Moses and His people, Israel. And He will continue to be good to you and me.
God might lead us down a path we didn’t plan for, but He never leaves us. Moses didn’t need a detailed plan before heading to the promised land; he needed to be reminded of God’s goodness. And God’s goodness passed before Moses! All Moses had to do was rest in it, and so do we.
Life doesn’t come with a map, but it does come with a promise: If we follow God, His goodness will follow us all of the days of our lives (Psalm 23:6).
Dear Lord, I don’t know what lies ahead, but You do. Help me to rest in Your goodness that is rooted in Your character as I confidently step into whatever You have planned for me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.—Sarah Frazer3
Published on Anchor September 2026. Read by Gabriel Garcia Valdivieso. Music by John Listen.
1 “God’s Delays Aren’t Denials,” pastors.com, https://www.pastors.com/free-resources/gods-delays-arent-denials
2 “What is the Christian’s hope?” gotquestions.org, https://www.gotquestions.org/hope-Bible.html
3 Sarah Frazer, “Resting in God’s Goodness When Your Story Shifts,” proverbs31.org, November 1, 2025, https://proverbs31.org/read/devotions/full-post/2025/11/01/resting-in-gods-goodness-when-your-story-shifts
