My kids are such techies! They love playing on my iPhone. I’m basic. I use my phone to text, check email, and conduct business. I play the occasional word game, but I’m fairly certain my kids have more applications on my phone than I do.
I always check the content of the application they are seeking to download from the app store. I want to ensure that it is age-appropriate, relevant, and a good source of education or entertainment. If I deem the application acceptable I enter the password to permit the download to take place. But, sometimes I just have to tell my kids “NO.” Maybe the content is too graphic, maybe the timing is wrong, maybe it’s too expensive, or maybe they just don’t need it. I exercise my right as a parent to say “NO”…always with their best interest in mind.
Our relationship with God offers us access to the “App Store.” We offer up our “app” requests through prayer. Our Father ensures that the applications we’re seeking to download into our lives are appropriate, relevant, and purposeful. If God deems the application acceptable then He permits the download to take place. But, sometimes like a good Daddy He tells us “NO.” Maybe the content is compromising to our walk with Christ, maybe the timing is wrong, maybe we don’t recognize the true cost associated with this request or maybe we what we think we need isn’t what we really need. But, as our Daddy He exercises His right to tell us “NO”…always with our best interest in mind.
I always encounter two forms of impatience during the download process. Aiden sighs at length of time it takes for the application to download and often retreats to the app store to find a comparable app that can download faster. Devyn is two. So, that little blue loading bar just frustrates her. She taps it incessantly without realizing that each time she taps it she actually pauses the download process. I laugh and seek to occupy their attention while they wait by reminding them of how many other amazing apps they have to play with and use while they wait. They have a lot more peace when they take their eyes off that little blue download bar.
We may receive a form of confirmation or validation that our “app” is on its way, but enduring the wait that accompanies the “download” process can be challenging. Sometimes we compromise and seek to find a comparable app that can download faster. Sometimes we try to force it to download quicker and inadvertently slow down the process. I believe that God laughs and seeks to remind us not to lose sight of all the other amazing “apps” He has faithfully provided and to cast our eyes to Him to obtain peace with the download process.
Sometimes when the apps are really large I have to connect it to the computer in order for the download to take place.
Sometimes when we are believing in God for something major we need to ensure we’re connected to Him through consistent prayer in order for the download to take place.
So, today as you’re scanning the app store seeking to find an application to enhance your life recognize that God has already anticipated your needs and permitted the download of an acceptable application. Trust Him to faithfully fulfill each of your needs. Stop getting frustrated at the length of time it’s taking to secure your new app. Stay connected to God by continuing to nurture your prayer life. Practice giving thanks, take your eyes off that little blue download bar, and focus on Christ. It's coming. You'll have it before you know it.
“And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.” --Philippians 4:19 (NLT)
Ashley Ivery is a single mother of two brilliant children, Aiden and Devyn, with an overwhelming desire to empower women and help them to realize the importance of a relationship with God. Through her writing she hopes to encourage women to claim their strength and value in Christ. She graduated from Fayetteville State University in 2012 with a BS in Psychology. Her motto is: "Be Authentic. Live Honestly. Dispel Light."
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