When You Want Something You Can’t Get, God Says . . .

Mark 14:8

Perhaps you want to be married, but no matter what you try you can’t seem to meet anyone. Perhaps you want a better career, but no matter how many applications you fill out, the phone never rings. Or perhaps you are watching someone you love make really destructive decisions and are faced with the cold reality that you are totally unable to convince them to change.

It can be one of the most frustrating and helpless feelings to have a desire for something that is completely outside of your control to get. So what can be done? By applying the Scriptures outlining the events leading up to Jesus’ death and resurrection in Mark 14-16, we can see at least 4 principles that can help us during times where we want something that is out of our control.

I also wanted to quickly let you know that there are only a few hours left to enroll in AGW University. These relationship training courses are not magic, but I do truly believe they have the potential to greatly transform the trajectory of your life if you put in the time and hard work that is required. If you enroll before 11:59pm tonight, you get lifetimes access to all 5 of these relationship courses, 3 months of bonus email coaching with me, lifetime access to the private Facebook group which has over 810 other students in it currently, and a $50 scholarship. Feel free to click here to learn more before the deadline passes by.

1. Never Underestimate the Power of Doing What You Can

Wanting only the best is often what prevents us from doing something good. Sometimes we need to accept that things are out of our control while also rejecting the lie that nothing is in our control. You may not be able to solve your problem. You may not be able to get exactly what you want. But rarely is it true that there is nothing you can do.

No one could stop the sovereign plan of God to allow Jesus to be crucified. But before he died, a woman did what she could for Jesus. She anointed his feet with expensive oil, and this made everyone very mad. But notice how Jesus rebukes those who did nothing for him and praises the women who did what she could. In Mark 14:6-9, it states:

But Jesus said, ‘Leave her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you will not always have me. She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burial. And truly, I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.”

She couldn’t stop the death of Jesus. But she could anoint his feet with what she had. Likewise, you can’t bring your future spouse into your life right now, but you can stop living an isolated life. You can’t promote yourself at work, but you can do your best to keep improving your value at work. You can’t change someone who is making bad choices, but you can pray for them and love them where they are at.

When something is out of your control, don’t forget to still do what is in your control.

2. Resist Doing Something That Will Only Make It Worse

As Shakespeare said, “Striving to better, oft we mar what’s well.”

Judas felt helpless, but his course of action just made things worse for himself. He wanted things he couldn’t have, so he stole to get them (John 12:6). He wanted Jesus to be different, so he got mad and betrayed him (Mark 14:10-11). Notice what Jesus said about him in Mark 14:21, “For the Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.”

Likewise, while we should always do what we can, we also need to be careful we don’t do things that will only make our situation worse. You may want a spouse, but dating someone who is living in sin will only slow down the process of you getting into a godly relationship. You may want a better job, but if you go to work with a bad attitude you might lose the job you have. You may want someone to change, but if you press them too hard they might avoid you even more than they already do.

When something is out of your hands, avoid making the situation worse. Sometimes doing nothing and accepting the situation for what it is will be your best option.

3. Use Your Waiting to Prepare for When You Can Do Something

Jesus tried to warn the disciples about his coming death, but Peter tried to rebuke Jesus for saying these things and got rebuked by Jesus instead (Mark 8:32-33). Jesus warned Peter about his coming betrayal, but Peter denied it and promised that he would never deny Jesus (Mark 14:26-31). And Jesus tried to help Peter prepare for the coming trial by encouraging him to pray, but Peter fell asleep instead (Mark 14:37-38).

Peter didn’t have to like what Jesus was saying, but he also should have accepted there was nothing he could do to change the coming trials. By accepting the reality of the coming situation, he could have prepared for it through prayer.

Likewise, we can often see what’s coming down the line. But when we don’t like it, we often deny what we are seeing and pretend like it’s not going to happen. Instead of living in denial when something is coming that is out of your control, the key is to prepare for it during your season of waiting before it happens.

4. Start Walking Before You See the End of the Road, Trusting That God Will Make a Way as You Approach Each Need that Arises

Jesus had some very faithful women on his ministry team. And just like the woman who did what she could by anointing his feet before his burial, these women wanted to do what they could to anoint Jesus’ body after his burial.

But there was a problem. They knew there was a massive stone blocking them from Jesus’ body, and they knew they couldn’t move it themselves (Mark 16:1-3). So what did they do? Did they give up? Did they stay home because they knew the stone was too heavy? No, they did what they could. They walked to the tomb, knowing there was an immovable stone waiting for them there. They couldn’t see how they would move this stone, but they could see how they could walk up to the stone. And so that’s what they did.

Some of us wait to start until we can see the finish line. But that’s how you end up in last place. When you try to stay single because you are afraid someone will leave you, you are already alone anyways. If you are afraid to apply because you don’t know if you are qualified, you’ve already secured your lack of a promotion.

We need to do what these women did. We need to start walking, trusting that God will make a way once we get to the actual barrier, and not before. As Mark 16:4 states, “And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large.”

As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, the deadline to enroll in AGW University will close tonight in just a few hours at 11:59pm.

I certainly cannot guarantee that if you enroll in AGW University that God will send you a spouse right away. These training courses are not magic and I would never want to mislead anyone by making them think I know a secret marriage formula.

However, what I can promise you is that if you are in a season of life where you are prepared to work hard and truly study what the word of God says about relationships, you will grow immensely by enrolling in AGW University. And while I would never claim to have a secret marriage formula, I have created a wise blueprint that you can follow to increase your chances of meeting the one God might have for you.

I believe so much in the biblical information packed into these courses that I offer a 30-day money back guarantee for anyone not fully satisfied with their experience, no questions asked. Here’s what a few recent students have said about their experiences:

If you enroll before the deadline, which is tonight at 11:59pm, you will get:

• All 5 relationship training courses, which is a total of 63 in-depth biblical classes. Each class has a video and the content is all in writing as well.
• In addition to lifetime access to these 5 courses designed specifically for Christian singles who want to know a biblical path for singleness and dating, you will also get lifetime access to the AGW University private Facebook group. This is where all the students can come together, share their struggles, make new friends, and learn from each other. I started this group as a little side bonus, but it has since blossomed into a thriving, encouraging community of likeminded people. This group has over 810 students in it thus far.
• Also, if you enroll before the deadline, I’m giving you three months of bonus email coaching with me for no additional tuition cost. This is where you can share your personal story with me and you and I can create an individualized plan just for you to help you follow the Lord’s leading in your life specifically.
• Lastly, for everyone who enrolls before 11:59pm tonight, I am also giving a $50 scholarship.

Again, this is not a magical formula. Rather, this is an invitation to those of you who desire to go the next level and receive specialized relationship training that stems right from God’s word. Click here and you can see all the course content and all the other bonuses I haven’t even mentioned yet. I’ll see you over at AGW University. God bless!