Prayers, Peaks and Trusting God's Perfect Timing

Learning to Trust God’s Perfect Timing in Prayer and in Life’s Uphill Climbs

As I write, I am sitting atop the peak of one of the foothills of Mt. Rainier. It is one of those bluebird days where the mountains are visible in all their glory. From this vantage point, I can see three of the volcanoes of the Cascade Range. Some days, people can see all six, but today, there is a distant haze on the horizon from nearby wildfires. The view is spectacular.

Seeking Solitude in Nature

I came to the woods this morning seeking solitude after months of hectic schedules and constant companionship. It’s a Tuesday morning, and the climb is a steady 4 miles, gaining 3,000 feet. Thankfully, I have seen nary a soul on this trail. The peace I sought has enveloped me. The miles of silence gave me time to clear my head, breathe out the pressure that had been building, and converse with God. Along the way, I brought to Him an issue dear to my heart—one that had been weighing heavily on me.

However, I realized that in offering it to Him, I struggled to trust that He would provide. Somehow, the months of busyness and distraction had created a barrier between my heart and His, breaking down my confidence in His goodness and faithfulness.

Remembering God’s Faithfulness

In response to this realization, I sat on a log and began listing all the specific prayers God has answered in my life. Prayers for others, for health, for situations, healing, and relationships. He made it clear to me that He has been actively working through all areas of my life, but I had simply become blind to it; I had forgotten. On that log, He reminded me that, to His glory, I am not the same person I was five years ago, or even one year ago. God has been moving and working all along. If He has come through for me in such ways in the past, I can certainly continue to trust Him now, knowing that His ways and His timing are always for our good.

The Journey of Prayer

As I continued to walk, God revealed to me how answered prayers are much like the hike I was on. David prayed in Psalm 69, “But as for me, my prayer is to you, O Lord. At an acceptable time, O God, in the abundance of your steadfast love answer me in your saving faithfulness” (Psalm 69:13 ESV). Rarely are the answers to our prayers instantaneous; rather, they come in God’s perfect timing. Often, the waiting feels like an uphill climb.

This particular hike started steep, switchbacking through a relatively nondescript forest. There were no views to admire, no wildflowers, and the forest floor was a chaos of downed trees and branches. This is often like the beginning of our prayers. We may have a problem that we bring to God, but we hear nothing in response. We continue to trudge uphill into the silence, seeing no change. This is where we must make a choice—do we keep going, trusting there is something better in store, or do we succumb to the dreariness and monotony and give up?

Glimpses of Hope

About the middle of the hike, the terrain shifted. The trees thinned along the hillside, and small glimpses of Mt. Rainier became visible, but not in full measure. This is like when we begin to see God’s hand at work in our situations. We see small glimpses of hope or the potential for change. We are learning to trust Him, but our hearts still ache with our burden.

I continued and rose above the tree line. At this point, I could see Mt. Rainier fully in all its beauty. Wildflowers began to appear. However, the climb steepened, and I knew there were still miles to go, but the reward was in sight. These are the times when God does something to show how He is in control. He reaffirms our trust in Him. We experience His love in a mighty way. Sometimes our situations may get harder in the process, not easier, but just the awareness of His presence is transformative. Yet, we know there is still more to our desire, to our need that is unmet, that our climb is still unfinished.

A break in the trees brings light to the trail

The mountain comes into full view

View of the full horizon from the top of the peak

Reaching the Peak

After an especially steep scramble, I reached the peak, and the full panoramic display came into view. I could see multiple mountains, not just Mt. Rainier. This is the hindsight of a prayer fully answered, when we see what God had intended for us all along. We can look back and marvel at His steadfast faithfulness in getting us through the climb, through the very worst of our struggles to bring us to the place where He intended for us all along. We simply needed to put one foot in front of the other and keep going, trusting in God's faithfulness and perfect timing.

The Challenge of Trust

This hike was certainly challenging; my heart rate was elevated, and I was breathing heavily. However, I was never overtly uncomfortable because I have been training all summer. My body was conditioned for the challenge. That is also what happens the more we learn to trust God with our prayers. At first, surrender may seem painful, but the more we do it, the more natural it becomes. It will always require effort. Trust is never natural. But, just as I could simply put one foot in front of the other and climb, God will stay with us, with every step, as we build our reliance on Him.

I am fortunate to be doing this hike on a sunny day, to complete the climb and receive the reward. However, in this area, it is common for clouds to obscure the mountains. There are many days when I could have done this trek and not seen a single majestic peak. Sometimes prayer is like that too. We never get the thing we earnestly desire. Sometimes the illness persists. Sometimes our loved one still dies. Sometimes the relationship stays broken. In those instances, when the mountain hides, it can be tempting to think that God has abandoned us too.

Finding God in the Gloom

However, the Bible says that “God is close to the broken-hearted” (Psalm 34:18). He is with us in our joys and in our sorrows. When we expand our focus, we can see the fingerprints of His goodness even in the gloom—in the wildflowers lining the path, giving color to the day; in birdsong filling the air; in the soft footing of the ground that wasn’t technical, rocky, or rooted, but rather a sure-footed climb to the top; in the protection from mountain lions and bears. He has been holding us the entire time. Ultimately, we can find assurance that one day, we will be able to see the full view. We will be reunited with loved ones. Our bodies will find full healing. We can see the hindsight of every unanswered prayer. That is the beauty of hope and trust in the promise of eternity. That is essentially what our training in prayer has been preparing us for. The unanswered prayers do not negate the faithfulness or the goodness of God.

Embracing the Journey

Today, my heart is full of thankfulness for the way God speaks through nature and solitude. I encourage you to seek both in your own walk with God. Perhaps He will reveal to you an unknown barrier that has been keeping you distanced from Him. I am also grateful that God works on His own timeline, not on ours. If you are having difficulty trusting Him, remember all the ways that He has come through for you in the past. He is inherently faithful and will continue to be so, because it is essential to His nature. Finally, when the trail of trust is especially steep, remember His great love for you and how He is walking with you until the end.