Listen. Wait. Hope.

Listen. Wait. Hope.

These have been His words to me in this journey of shining for His glory.

Listen. Wait. Hope.

Each step to take comes from Him. Listening for His call.

Since coming out as an author, with the publishing of The Heart of Bethlehem, a whole slew of calls have come over the last couple of years. Calls from marketing specialists. Calls from other self-publishing houses who want to republish. Calls from the original publisher to see if they can publish more for me.

As I listen to the messages left on the answering machine, I also listen for Him. Is this an opportunity to pursue? So far… He answers: No.

But a different call came last week. A woman left a message. Spoke the title of my book clearly. And she identified herself as “a literary agent.” This was new. This was something that caught my attention. Because from my understanding of a literary agent’s role, she doesn’t want money from me, she wants to represent me on the basis of the potential seen in what I’ve already written.

Listening, I returned her call. Left my own message on her answering machine.

The waiting began. Several days passed. Perhaps it was just another scam. Another dead end on the path to establishing a place in the world of writers, authors.

[ Photo by Allie Smith on Unsplash ]

Then this week she called back. She thanked me for returning her call and I confessed the reason for the returned call was that she identified herself as a literary agent: Is that true?

She said it was and began to talk to me about the reasons for her company’s interest in my book. She gave details which actually told me she was familiar with The Heart of Bethlehem.

From listening and waiting, hope began to rise. She asked if I had another book ready to publish, she thought I did from my blog. (Oh glory! She went to my blog?) I began to tell her about my current work on publishing my second devotional book through a different company than the first. The vision of it being formatted as a journal… and before I could get very far… before I could tell her the title… I realized we had been disconnected!

I tried to call back. Left messages with another number to call. She had asked if I had time to talk, so I assumed she did too. But the waiting did not bring about a return call.

So. Here I am. Back to my instructions from Him: Listen. Wait. Hope.

Wondering if the disconnect is protection from Him or a troublesome ploy from the enemy. Wondering if a call will return. Wondering if she decided in the couple of minutes the relationship was not worth pursuing.

Ultimately, I listen, wait, and hope in Him. He will bring about what He wants to bring about with the offerings I pour out to Him.

I cannot make one thing happen on my own. It’s all in His hands. Trusting Him as He calls me to: Listen. Wait. Hope.

Blessed is the one who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors. For whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from the Lord…

Proverbs 8:34-35 ESV

Where are you pursuing His call? are you finding the waiting hard? losing hope in the process?

Listen for Him. Let His Wisdom direct you. He alone is worth waiting for. He is the only sure place to set your hope.

Join me on the journey: Listen. Wait. Hope.