“The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O Lord, endureth for ever.” — Psalm 138:8
There are seasons when almost everything in life seems unfinished. We are waiting for answers, trying to solve problems that do not have immediate solutions, carrying hopes that have not yet become reality, and wondering how pieces that seem completely unrelated could possibly fit together.
It can leave us with the uncomfortable feeling that we should be further along by now.
Perhaps we thought a prayer would have been answered already, a situation would have changed, a relationship would have healed, finances would have improved, or the direction of our lives would have become clearer. Instead, we find ourselves somewhere in the middle, unable to return to where we were but not yet able to see where God is taking us.
Psalm 138:8 offers a different way of looking at those unfinished places: “The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me.”
David was not saying that he had everything figured out. Much of his life was marked by uncertainty, opposition, mistakes, waiting, and circumstances he could not control. Yet he trusted that God was still working in the things that concerned him, even when the finished result was not yet visible.
We often want God to show us the completed picture before we are willing to trust the process. We want to know how the problem will be solved, where the money will come from, what the next season will look like, and whether the thing we are hoping for will actually happen. We would like reassurance that every loose end will eventually tie itself neatly together.
Most of the time, God does not give us that kind of view.
Instead, He asks us to trust Him from somewhere in the middle.
That can be difficult because unfinished things easily begin to feel like failed things. A plan that has not worked yet can start to feel like a bad plan. A prayer that has not been answered can begin to feel forgotten. A dream that is moving slowly can seem foolish simply because it has not reached the place we hoped it would.
But unfinished does not mean abandoned.
God has never been limited by our ability to see progress. Some of His work happens quietly, beneath circumstances that appear unchanged. There are connections being made that we cannot see, lessons being learned that we will only recognize later, and paths being prepared before we know we will need them.
This does not mean every plan we make will succeed exactly as we imagined it. Sometimes God completes His work by changing our direction rather than fulfilling our original expectation. His promise is not that He will finish every plan we create for ourselves, but that He remains faithful in the things He is doing within our lives.
That requires a different kind of patience.
Instead of asking, Why isn’t this finished yet? we can begin asking, What is God asking of me while it is still unfinished?
Perhaps there is something we can do today, or perhaps there is nothing to do except wait faithfully. There may be a conversation to have, a responsibility to handle, a decision to make, or a prayer to continue praying. There may also be a point where we have done everything available to us and must leave the outcome with God.
Both action and waiting can require faith.
If your life feels unfinished today, remember that you are looking at it from inside the story. You cannot yet see every chapter that follows this one, and you do not know which things that seem disconnected now will eventually make sense together.
God does.
You do not need to force an ending simply because you are uncomfortable with the middle. You can keep doing what He has placed before you, remain open to His direction, and trust that His work is not finished simply because you cannot yet see where it is going.
A Prayer for Today
Father, there are parts of my life that feel unfinished, and sometimes I become impatient because I want to understand where everything is going. Help me remember that You see far beyond the part of the story I can see today.
Give me wisdom to know when I need to act and patience when I need to wait. Keep me from mistaking slow progress for failure or unanswered questions for Your absence. If You are changing my direction, help me recognize it, and if You are asking me to continue, give me the strength to remain faithful.
Thank You that the things concerning me are not beyond Your care and that Your work does not depend upon my ability to see the finished picture.
Amen.
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