Almost all of us have experienced the feeling that comes from believing somebody else’s life is better, easier, happier, or more successful than ours. But comparison is the thief of joy, and God is focused on working with us from the inside out. Maybe you’re in a season of waiting and wondering when God is going to move; trust Him, don’t compromise on your standards, and know that some of HIs best refining work happens when we wait on Him.

God answered Zechariah and Elizabeth’s prayers to have a baby — but He did it within His perfect timing. He had a plan for that baby far beyond what anybody could see: John the Baptist would grow up to pave the way for God’s own Son. Our prayers might seem repetitive, and it might even feel like they’re falling on deaf ears. But God not only hears, He answers, and our only job is to wait on Him and trust Him in the process.

God always answers our prayers — but sometimes, His answer is that we need to wait! We can’t always see what the Lord has in store. But in those moments of uncertainty, we’ve got to trust that He sees the big picture, and that He’ll come through to meet our every need.

It’s easy to look at other people’s lives and compare what we see to what we don’t have ourselves. But as we’re looking at the outside, God’s busy working on us from the inside. Whatever — or whoever — we’re waiting on God to bring into our lives, let’s not compromise our standards, but let’s trust Him while we wait.