Stuck or Safe?

by Beth Parkinson

Presenter, CBN UK

There can be a fine line between being stuck and being held in a place of safety, but how do you tell the difference? Are you stuck or are you safe?

Infant Revelation

My little girl has taken to loudly declaring herself ‘stuck’ when she’s strapped into the car seat or buckled into her booster seat at the table. She is, after all, only 2 years old, and doesn’t have the diversity of language yet to quite convey what’s really happening. That she wants to move from where she is.  

But there’s something profound in her simple language. Something truer than we care to admit as adults when we look at our circumstances.

We can so easily see ourselves ‘stuck’ in a situation, keen to move on to the next thing, ready to make our move. But are we actually stuck? Or if we look more closely at the situation, is it that we are being held in safety?

A car seat is not designed to limit or contain a child as its first function, but to limit the damage that could happen to them until their bodies have grown bigger, stronger, and more able to deal with impacts that could come their way. Car seats are designed to enable travel from one location to another – to deliver something, someone, so very precious, in safety.

What if God is holding you in a place of safety while He moves you into a new season?  

No Excuses

Hear me rightly – please, PLEASE, do not use this as an excuse for apathy or indecision – there are also times when we need to pursue the good that God has for us, there are times we need to fight our way out of the box of social norms and expectations, or our own insecurities has limited us to and that we’re stuck in.What if God is holding you in a place of safety while He moves you into a new season?  

The great thing is that, as we press in day by day to the word of God, asking the Holy Spirit to open our hearts to His truth, we learn more and more how to discern one path from another. We learn when to press in, to push forward, and when instead to rest in His presence and trust that as we wait, He is growing something in us to get us ready for the next step that He has planned.  

Wise Counsel

As well as the Holy Spirit as our counsellor (John 14:26), He also gifts us with church community, leaders, friends, who can bring wisdom and experience to your journey (Proverbs 19:20-21 and Proverbs 15:22). 

Regardless of if you feel safe or stuck today – ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you what your next step is.

Whether it’s patiently wait on the Lord, whether you need to go after what He has next, or whether you’re in a season on stillness and growth. Gather those trusted friends around you, and trust that your heavenly Father is a good, good God who wants good things for His children.

Scriptures to ponder…

Listen to counsel and accept discipline,
That you may be wise the rest of your days.
Many plans are in a man’s heart,
But the counsel of the Lord will stand. 

(Proverbs 19:20-21) 

Without consultation, plans are frustrated,
But with many counsellors they succeed. 

(Proverbs 15:22) 

But the Counsellor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 

(John 14:26) 

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