29. Trusting God When You Can't Fix It

We've all had problems we feel helpless to fix. Whether it's an illness, a job situation, an unscrupulous landlord, or an unjust system, there are times when we can't remedy the situation. 

In this heartfelt finale of season one of 'Courageous Retirement,' host Vona Johnson shares how she is facing problems she cannot fix and offers encouragement for those feeling overwhelmed. Her story is a testament to the power of faith and trust in God's plan. 

Through touching stories, including an inspiring encounter involving her grandson, Vona emphasizes the importance of listening to God's quiet nudges and trusting His plan. 

She reflects on scripture passages that provide comfort and urges listeners to rely on prayer and faith rather than trying to fix everything themselves. 

This episode reminds us to embrace our faith, live our purpose, and trust God, especially during challenging times when we feel helpless. 

Join us for valuable insights and spiritual encouragement that are relevant to everyone who struggles with situations we cannot control. 

00:00 Introduction: Facing Unfixable Problems
00:39 The Challenge of Watching Others Struggle
01:51 A Personal Story: The Angel in the Red Jeep
02:57 God's Subtle Nudges
04:43 The Power of Prayer and Scripture
06:18 Trusting God's Plan
08:02 Conclusion and Season Wrap-Up

Scripture References:
 "And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers[a] in harmony with God’s own will." Romans 8:26-27 NLT

"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. " Psalm 34:18 NLT

"Give all your worries and cares to God for he cares for you."  1 Peter 5:7 NLT

Quotes from Vona:
"And that's why we, as believers, need to be bold sometimes. Not pushy, but bold enough to follow that nudge that God is giving us to act in love, even when we're not sure if our action will be well received."

"It's okay to trust God when it doesn't feel like there's anything else that we can do. In fact, sometimes it takes more courage to stand back and let God reveal his plan in his timing than it does for us to rush in and try and fix it."

This concludes Season 1 of Courageous Retirement. I hope you have enjoyed it. I will be taking a short hiatus and will return mid-July. I encourage you to go back and listen to earlier epsisodes you may have missed or hop over and listen to episodes of Longing for More!
https://episodes.fm/1393780527?view=apps&sort=popularity

I'll see you back here soon. Enjoy your summer!

I'd love to hear from you! Send me a text message!

Thank you for stopping by today! Remember to Engage Your Faith and Live Your More as you reap the benefits of Courageous Retirement!

To watch the video, check out my YouTube Channel!

Learn more about the show, author Vona Johnson, and more at vonajohnson.com!

Schedule a free 15 minute Your Path to More call with Vona.

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Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Lately I've been surrounded byproblems that I can't fix.

(00:03):
As a problem solver and a fixer.
This has been really hard forme.
I really wanna help in thesesituations, but the reality is I
can't fix any of them.
I am going share someencouragement and things that I
do to help me get through thesedifficult times I hope you'll
join us.

Vona Johnson (00:20):
Do you fear?
What lies beyond retirement?
What if it's a gateway to a lifefilled with purpose, meaning,
and adventure rather than anend?
Discover peace and fulfillmentas you boldly enter this new
chapter in CourageousRetirement, a Christian podcast.
I'm your host, author, and coachVona Johnson.
Let's get started.
You know, it's really hard tosit back and watch people that

(00:43):
we care about go throughstruggles in their lives,
whether it's someone we knowpersonally or as a community, we
want things to go well forpeople.
We want people to be able toknow that they're protected and
cared for, and it's reallydifficult when there are times
when we just can't solve theproblems.
As as people who have a tendencyto be independent and wanna work

(01:07):
things out ourselves, it can bereally, really challenging when
we realize that we just can'tfix it.
As a city commissioner I've beenchallenged because there have
been some problems that come upin areas that I'm supposed to be
the expert in and affordablehousing.
And there are problems that thecity just can't fix, and my

(01:27):
heart just goes out to thosefolks.
I have a friend whose landlordis just being terrible and not
fixing anything, and when shebrings it up, he just tells her
to move.
Who does that?
I have other friends who, haveserious illnesses having
surgery, potentially others withrehab.

(01:48):
The list just goes on and on ofall of the things that are going
on.
You know, this reminded me of something that
happened recently with mygrandson.
He was trying a new route to hisfriend's but this new route kind
of got him twisted around and heended up getting lost.
And it was really scary for a,for a 7-year-old little guy.

(02:09):
It was terrifying.
And so he just stopped where hewas and was standing on the
corner just crying his littleheart out.
But God showed up in a form of avery kind stranger.
I like to call the kindstranger, the angel in a red
jeep because that person saw mylittle guy and recognized that

(02:31):
there was something wrong.
And instead of just driving by,they stopped.
They helped him and they madesure that he got home safely.
And it struck me, how often isit that we are the one who's
lost?
We're crying out, unsure of theway forward or the way that we
should be going, the path weshould take, and how often are
we the one that's being nudgedby God to stop notice someone

(02:54):
else and reach out and helpthem?
I think God nudges us in quietways, not always in a big voice
or a dramatic moment.
Sometimes it's just an idea thatwon't go away.
A thought like, maybe I shouldgo check in on that person, or I
wonder if they would need helpwith dinner tonight, or I wonder
if they would just really liketo have someone stop by and

(03:15):
visit.
The thing is people don't oftenask for help, whether it's
pride, fear, or just beingoverwhelmed.
They stay silent.
They don't wanna intrude.
They don't wanna be a bother,and that's why we as believers
need to be bold sometimes.
Not pushy, but bold enough tofollow that nudge that God is
giving us to act in love, evenwhen we're not sure if our

(03:40):
action will be well received.
Sometimes we're that little boystanding on the corner, aren't
we?
Sometimes we're lost and we'rescared and we're unsure where to
turn, and sometimes we're theangel in the red jeep The one
that God sends to help.
You know, God doesn't just hitus over the head when he wants
us to do something, he will giveus an idea and then he will.

(04:03):
Remind us of that idea, and hewill remind us again if we don't
follow through.
And after a while, it almostfeels urgent.
It's like, okay, God, I get it.
You really want me to do this.
In fact, I kind of go with therule.
If it, the idea has come upthree times and I haven't done
something, it might be time todo that.
And it can be scary to do that.
And we, can be, unsure as towhether we should do it, but

(04:26):
again, if he's nudging us, it'sprobably time to listen.
We don't need to be pushy.
We just need to be present, andwe need to be obedient.
When God asks us to help.
Sometimes In the situations thatI described before this, these
times where it just feels soheavy and there's nothing that I
can do to fix it.
Prayer can sometimes feel likeit's just something that we can

(04:47):
do when really it's everythingthat's the most important thing
we can do.
Scripture offers us somecomforting words.
Romans 8:26-27 tells us the HolySpirit prays for us with
groanings that cannot beexpressed in words.
And the Father who knows allhearts, knows what the Spirit is
saying for the Spirit pleads forus believers in harmony with

(05:10):
God's own will.
When I asked my grandson aboutbeing lost, I asked him if he
prayed, and he said, yeah, justa little bit.
And I, I feel like the, in thatmoment, the Holy Spirit was
praying for him because hedidn't know what to pray for.
Another verse that I think isreally helpful in these
situations is Psalm 34:18.

(05:31):
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted.
He rescues those whose spiritsare crushed.
And then of course, 1st Peter5:7 give all your worries and
cares to God for he cares foryou.
Sometimes we forget that hecares enough for us that he will
fix the problems even when itdoesn't look like the problem is
being fixed when we have stagefour cancer and it just doesn't

(05:52):
look like there's any hope.
God is there with us when ourspouse is sick or hurt, and
there doesn't seem to be anyhope.
We can know that God cares forus and he is there with us.
So it's okay not to have thewords or the right words,
sometimes just showing up,listening and praying is doing

(06:14):
something.
It may be more than we realize.
So I'm just gonna challenge youtoday to let go of this idea
like I've been feeling that weneed to fix everything.
Sometimes just being faithful insmall ways.
A call, a text, a prayer is waymore important than doing some

(06:35):
huge action that may actuallynot be helpful.
We need to obey God's nudgeseven when they don't make sense
at first.
We may not have all the answers,but we know the one who does,
and we need to lean into him,especially in those times when
we don't know what else to do.
This is a short episode becausethere's a lot going on and I

(06:58):
just wanted to pop in.
I truly was just feelingremorseful of all of the things
that are going on around me thatI'm not able to fix, and then I
just was reminded by scripturethat I don't have to, that's not
my job.
My job is to turn it over toGod, to lean in and to trust
him, to fix the problems, thechallenges that are happening in

(07:21):
our lives.
It's okay to trust God when itdoesn't feel like there's
anything else that we can do.
In fact, sometimes it takes morecourage to stand back and let
God reveal his plan in histiming than it does for us to
rush in and try and fix it.
I ask for God to give peace toanyone who's listening to this,
who is struggling with their ownissues, those challenges that

(07:44):
they can't fix.
And I just want them to rememberthat he is with us through all
things, and he will bring goodthrough all situations.
And I just pray that God willgive you the wisdom, the
discernment.
And the courage to respond tothe nudges that he's giving you.
This concludes season one ofCourageous Retirement, and I am

(08:07):
so grateful that you are herelistening.
I wanna take a short break,through the month of June and
we'll be back, mid-July.
And I encourage you to go backand listen to some of your
favorite episodes.
If you don't wanna stoplistening, do that or hop over
and listen to some episodes ofLonging for More.
There's so many messages inthere that really, inspire me

(08:31):
when I go back and listen tothem, and I think they will you
as well.
I was just so encouraged when Iread through A Different View
and the message that God gave methere.
So we're gonna come back andwe're gonna pick up some of
those messages and we're gonnatalk about'em here.
So I look forward to seeing youback here for season two of
Courageous Retirement, and ifthis episode.

(08:52):
Struck a chord with you.
If there's someone who seems tobe overwhelmed or just
frustrated with their inabilityto help someone in need, I ask
that you share this with them.
Maybe it will give them theencouragement that they need.
I encourage you to go embraceyour faith, live your more and
finish well in this beautifulseason of courageous retirement.

(09:14):
God bless.