A blessing delayed is not a blessing denied

If you have already read my last blog post on how Jesus stretched my faith, this only gets better. if you haven’t read it, check this out first. The reason that I title this blog post the way it is, is because there are times when it feels as though God is saying no (not explicitly saying it) where I was actually impatient. Being impatient and wanting to control things is a completely different blog post 😅.

This blog will be a little lengthy, but you’ll want to stick around for the whole time. It will keep you at the edge of your chair, couch, or toilet when reading! There are three topics I wanted to discuss:

1. A reminder I needed

2. The story

3. Reflection

A reminder I needed

My beautiful friend, Thelmary is such an encourager. There were quite a few times where she has reached out to me just to lift me up when I felt I was sinking. I am so glad for our friendship. She recently was accepted to a school for her master’s program and what she is majoring in is something she’s been wanting to do for awhile! On top of that, her faith activated my faith. That’s why it is necessary to be in relationships and friendships that are Christ centered.

When Thelmary was unsure with paying for school, she looked into loans, but also into an assistantship that will pay for her tuition and receive a stipend every month. As I was cooking dinner, I received a FaceTime call from Thelmary and she told me she got the position. Not only did I rejoice with her, I also asked God if I should look again and when I say that, I mean last year around the same time I went through something like this.

The story

I was looking to become a graduate research assistant once I started my masters program last fall in 2021. I looked everywhere online and on my school’s website in the summer, but I kept getting denied everywhere. For a background story, I originally did not want to get my masters degree unless God told me to do so. One day, God told me to do so last February once I received the email about my school starting a Masters program in Prosthetics and Orthotics (that I was about to graduate from), I knew that that was God coming in with divine intervention. It was then where God told me to apply for the program and he said that I would get in. Even though I was not the first selection for the students of the masters program, God still told me that I was going to get in and I trusted him. Once I received a call from the director of the program, I was so elated and couldn’t thank Jesus enough!

So now I am looking for a graduate research assistantship position to be able to pay for my masters degree because I told God that I did not want to pay for my masters program at all. Now I know this may sound very selfish or “I want what I want when I want”, but I did not ask to be in this program so I thought that it was automatically getting paid for by God. Little did I know, God had to humble me from that and I took out loans for the first year. I knew that I did not want to take out the student loans, but that was the only way I would be able to pay for tuition in my new apartment that I just moved into. So I still trusted God knowing that he was going to provide a way whether my tuition was going to get paid for the next year or I would have some type of income to be able to pay for my school. When my beautiful friend told me she was accepted into a masters program at her school and also received a graduate research assistant position, I was so excited for her. It was then where God reminded me to look up a graduate research assistant position on my school website. 

Now last year when I kept looking and I kept calling everybody no one was saying that there was any position available, but when I talked to the head of graduate admissions this year (2022), he told me to reach out to some of my professors and I happened to name my professor from my undergraduate program when I took Biomechanics and direct study (which is basically research with him). The man told me that I should email him and see if he was willing to do that position with me so that my tuition can get paid for. Immediately when I got into the car, I decided to email my old professor from my undergraduate program, and he emailed me back saying that he wanted to take me on as his graduate research assistant. I was ecstatic when I saw this email come back to my phone at 7 o’clock in the evening. As I emailed him back, we had a couple of discussions and I went back to the head of graduate admissions and was told that funding would need to be found for me to complete this graduate research assistant position. As God is the one who fights for me, my professor was also fighting for me to get this position and reached out to other professors for me to get funding for it. This happened in the span of ONE WEEK. This happened so quickly. This happened out of faith, trust, expectation, and time in prayer. 

I wanted to say that I have now officially received the position for a tier 1 assistantship which I will work 10 hours a week, receive $3000 for the semester, and have six credit hours paid for tuition. I was talking to Holy Spirit and I wanted to be sure if I should ask for more or if I should be content with the 10 hours that I am working. You know what He said “You don’t know if you don’t ask. The worst thing he can say is no”. I spoke to my professor on the phone asking for the next tier, tier 2 and he gladly agreed! This means that I will work 15 hours a week, receive $4500 for the semester, and have nine credit hours paid for tuition. In my masters degree, I only have 12 credit hours a semester so I’m only paying 1/4 of what my tuition would be! Isn’t God good?! 

Reflection

I remember when I received a prophetic word for me to give generously in this season and about how I would receive a double portion (April 2022) and now it’s July. Being a nanny, I didn’t realize how much I needed to give, but the parents also didn’t ask me to do their dishes, but I chose to do their dishes out of the kindness of my heart every time I nanny. I think that my giving to the family, not just the kids showed me to be selfless and also not do the dishes to expect something in return. 

I believe God was hiding me and saving me for this position because if I would’ve gotten it last year, I would’ve been stressed out. That’s when I first got my puppy, a new apartment, and started my masters degree. It would have been way too much to handle, but God does things in the right timing. He’s literally an intentional God. 

If you have been in a spot where you feel that God hasn’t shown up at the right time, step back for a minute and remind yourself to be still and know God is in control. No, it may not feel good in the moment, but that is where your faith starts to stretch further than what it is used to. Your blessing that you have been waiting on could be 1 month, 1 year, 5 years, or 10 years away, but it is on the way. This testimony for me took one year and out of that year, a couple of those months I completely forgot that I wanted this position. It’s funny how God will remind you of the things you wanted in past seasons that you were not yet prepared for, but reveal them in the right timing to you.

If you are reading this, I desire to encourage you out of your doubt and your confusion. I have literally been there on so many occasions, but God is always going to take care of you. A quote that I always like to say is “God is the God of my mountain, but also the God of my valley”. Abba is everywhere we go and the fact that He does that shows how much He cares and how much He loves us. Stay encouraged, my friends. I love you :)