Stuck between Already and not yet. Sounds about right to me…how about you?

There have been so many times since last May that make me feel like I am stuck in the in-between. 

• In-between the home we have known for 3 years and a new place. 
• In-between one school year that was difficult and another full of the promise of normalcy.
• In-between quarantine and “normal” life.
• In-between the prayer of faith and the manifestation of those prayers. 
• In-between what I had known to be my life and what was now my reality.

Recently I heard a podcast that described this space as being between the already and not yet. 

• God had already provided a beautiful and comfortable home for 3 years and He was providing another home that we had not yet occupied.
• God had already promised health and healing, but when Jason was in the hospital, we had not yet seen a physical manifestation of healing. 

I have found this in-between place to be very uncomfortable for many reasons. First being, I still do not feel like myself. This is probably because I am not the person I used to be anymore, nor will I be again. Sure, there will always be similarities, but because I lost my spouse I gained a title that I will in some ways always hold…widow. 

This place called the in-between is different for everyone. For some it is a comfortable place that can leave you complacent and unwilling to change or move forward out of your comfort zone. For some it is a place of fear. Fear of the unknown or maybe fear of moving forward and away from what the “already” means to you. Finally for some it is a challenge. Challenging because they had experienced so much in the “already” and maybe they are facing the “not yet” because of some life changing event. 

Oftentimes you can find yourself in these different cycles of in-between at different stages in your life. There will be times of comfort and complacency, there will be times of fear of the unknown, and there will be times of challenge in embracing change. You may feel that “Already” is familiar. Maybe “Already” holds sweet memories or maybe “Already” holds moments of loss and pain. “Not yet” is full of everything that is unknown. “Not yet” can be exciting because it holds new memories and experiences. “Not yet” is also a place of hope and expectation of what could be one day.

Currently, I find myself in-between the stages of fear and challenging. Fear because “already” was comfortable. “Already” was familiar. “Already” was where Jason and all the memories with him reside. Fear of “not yet” means moving forward without him physically by my side. Fear of “not yet” means letting go of the future we had planned. In some instances, I also find the in-between challenging. Challenging to find a new purpose. Challenging because I am building a new life without my love. Challenging because everything has changed and nothing has changed. Challenging because my “we” was suddenly changed to “me”.

So, how do you navigate the in-between? How do you push through everything that is holding you to the “already” and walk past what is causing you fear about the “not yet”? First, you must invite God into that space. He is the only one that can fill the void that you feel between “already” and “not yet”.  God is a promise keeper. God is a way-maker. God is faithful. He will meet you right where you are, even if you are stuck in the space that in-between the already and the not yet. He will meet you in your imperfection. He is longing for you to invite Him into your in-between space. Will you do that today?