In Limbo, but Not Alone

I can’t go back to church,” my friend confessed as we stood in my driveway. Before heading back to her car, we’d paused for an impromptu check-in. She was obviously wrestling with something. As I listened to her nervously explain, anticipating a negative reaction from me, I could tell she felt alone in her experience. 

I asked her if she felt in limbo, in between places. She was relieved to hear words that resonated with her soul and experience. 

A few years ago, I stood in someone else’s driveway listening as a couple shared with me that they couldn’t go back to their church. As they professed their convictions, I grieved their experience. You see, God let me know that this was going to happen. In what felt like a whisper from God’s Spirit, He gave me a “heads up” that more people would feel compelled to move on from their local churches, but He also let me know that I shouldn’t worry because His goodness would always prevail. 

So when my friend awkwardly poured out her convictions and anxiety onto my driveway, I wasn’t shocked. This kind of impromptu confession had become a familiar experience. I had not only listened in driveways but also on sidewalks after events, at the end of business meetings, and in the corner during a social gathering. 

The good news is that in the absence of certainty, God is fully present and magnified. 

God is in this in-between place; He’s in our questions, our searching, our courageous moving and shifting. God is with us in the driveway as we grasp for assurance, direction, and protection. 

Whether we meet in a church building on Sundays or a coffee shop on Wednesdays, we need time together to be vulnerable and to be validated. We also need to be in each other’s presence to stir life within one another. We need close proximity to snuff out isolation. Gathering brings definition to the in-between place and reminds us not to be afraid. Meeting together helps reconcile the limbo and calls it good! 

Feeling uncertain about the way forward is okay. But being in limbo doesn’t mean you have to be alone. 

Give your burdens to the LORD, and He will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall. PSALM 55:22 NLT 

Where are you finding God’s strength today? 

This is an excerpt from 100 Days of Strength in Any Struggle from (in)courage – a devotional now available on DaySpring.com. Shop all books, journals, and devotions from DaySpring here.