The in-between - by G.G.A.O.

You are always preparing for something. Preparing for WAEC. Preparing for JAMB. Preparing for university. Preparing for NYSC. Preparing to get a job. Preparing to get married. Preparing to become financially stable. Preparing to become that person you have always imagined yourself becoming. And somewhere in between all this preparation, you are also expected to pray. Pray for admission.Pray for good grades.Pray for a good job.Pray for a life partner.Pray for financial breakthrough.Pray that God will make your future beautiful. And we do o. 😭 We pray. We fast. We attend vigils. We sow seeds. We write prayer requests in our journals. We join prayer meetings. We declare that this coming year will be better than the last one. We hold on to God's promises. We believe that He has good plans for us. We believe that our lives will make sense eventually. And honestly? That is beautiful. ❤️ But then, something crossed my mind. In the midst of preparing for the life we want, what happens to the life we currently have? Because tell me why we are always looking forward to something. When I get into the university, I'll be fine. When I graduate, I'll finally breathe. When I get a job, I'll be happy. When I start earning good money, I'll enjoy my life. When I get married, things will be better. When I finally become the person God has called me to be, THENNNN, I'll have peace. But what happens before all these things happen? What happens in the waiting room? What happens when you have prayed about your future, but your present is looking somehow? 😭 What happens when you believe God has a beautiful plan for your life, but you honestly cannot explain what He is doing with the current chapter? What happens when your mates seem to be moving forward, and you are there trying to understand your own pace? What happens when you have big dreams, genuine faith, and a heart that wants to do so much, but you still don't know how everything is going to work out? Nobody really prepares you for that part. Nobody tells you that you can love God and still be confused about your career. That you can have faith and still worry about your finances. That you can pray fervently and still have questions about your purpose. That you can be a Christian, genuinely desire God's will, and STILL not have everything figured out. And sometimes, I think we put so much pressure on ourselves to have everything together that we forget we are still growing. We want to be spiritually mature, financially stable, academically sound, emotionally intelligent, purpose-driven, and successful. Preferably before we turn 25. 😂😭 And if possible, we want to achieve all of these while looking like we have our lives together on social media. God abeg! But seriously, when did living become something we keep postponing? When did we start treating our present like a waiting room we must escape before we can finally enjoy our lives? We were taught to pray about tomorrow. And yes, we should. We were taught to trust God with our future. And yes, we must. But somewhere along the line, I began to wonder if we are also learning to recognise God in the now. In the little things. In the season where nothing extraordinary seems to be happening. In the days when all you did was attend your lectures, complete an assignment, help someone, learn something new, laugh with your friends, and go to bed. In the season where you are not yet who you want to be, but you are no longer exactly who you used to be. In the seemingly ordinary days that don't look like the testimonies we are praying for. Can we learn to live there, too? Can we trust God with our future without being so anxious to leave our present? Can we pursue our dreams without making ourselves feel like failures because we haven't achieved them yet? Can we prepare for the life we are praying for while still being present enough to experience the life God has given us today? Because, honestly, what if life is not only about who we are becoming, but also about who we are being right now? What if this season is not just a bridge to the next big thing? What if there are things to learn here, people to love here, experiences to enjoy here, and little moments to appreciate here? What if we don't have to wait until everything makes sense before we allow ourselves to live? I don't have all the answers, sha. 😂 I'm asking myself these questions, too. But perhaps, while we are busy praying for the next chapter, we should also learn to pay attention to the one we are currently in. Pray for admission, yes. But live while waiting for admission. Pray for a good job, yes. But don't despise the season of learning, growing, and figuring things out. Pray for financial stability, yes. But learn, manage what you have, build good habits, and appreciate the little you can do now. Pray about your future, absolutely. But don't become so consumed by the person you hope to become that you forget to live as the person you are today. We have spent so much time preparing for tomorrow. Perhaps it's time we also learnt how to live today. Because tomorrow will come with its own responsibilities, its own prayers, and its own things to figure out. And if we keep postponing life until everything falls into place, when exactly will we start living? Over to you: Are we actually living, or are we just preparing to live? ❤️

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