As an elementary school teacher, I am asked the same question every day, “May I go to the restroom?”. Of course, I allow the children to use the restroom but there can be times when they will miss out on the most important part of the lesson if they are allowed to go to the restroom at that specific moment. I try to gauge if the child who requested to go to the restroom could wait just a few more minutes or if it is really a “now” situation. With K-1 students, they sometimes don’t give you much notice.

I am a Special Area STREAM Teacher so I see each group of students in Kindergarten through Grade 5 for 45 minutes a day. In their classroom, they have a daily routine of when they can go to the restroom. When they come to my class, there really isn’t built in time to leave the class and go to the restroom. However, I generally know when there is a great need to be excused.

There’s an interesting phenomenon that happens once the first child goes to the restroom. Typically, within minutes, another child will raise his or her hand to go to the restroom. If I allow the 2nd child to go, then a third child will need to go. I know how slippery of a slope that giving permission can be. Although I can tire of being asked the restroom permission question, I am glad that God doesn’t mind if I ask for His permission to do new things.

In my life, I have prayed and asked God to allow me to do things that were new to me, asked him for His wisdom and permission to move forward down specific paths, and prayed for his perfect will to be done. I know that in God’s grand design, He has already prepared the place in the future where He wants me to go so I want to prepare to get there. I don’t want to go down a path without asking His permission. I am so grateful to him for allowing me to see prayers answered and know that He sometimes answers with a No instead of with a Yes.

I am learning to ask and keep asking Him to answer prayer and provide wisdom on how to proceed. I am seeing Him answer prayer and lead me.

I am convinced that God has prepared things for us that we can’t even imagine just yet. So, really, when I’m asking Him to open a door, he knows if this is the right direction or not, the wise choice or not. His ways are not my ways so even His preferences may not be my preferences. I have to ask Him for His permission to make life choices when I can’t see the best direction. He is always faithful.

God is into doing new things and preparing these new things.

1 Corinthians 2:9 ESV But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”—

In Isaiah 43:18-19 (NIV), the Bible tells us that we are not to dwell on the past and to forget former things that have happened. The way I have typically lived is to dwell on the past and not forget things that I should have been willing to let go. But, the Word does not support my past ways. Instead, the Word tells me to see that God is doing new things. Can’t I see it? He makes a new path in an unexpected place.

“Forget the former things;
    do not dwell on the past.
 See, I am doing a new thing!
    Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
    and streams in the wasteland.”

It is all about moving forward and seeing what God is doing. He is doing a new thing that is springing up. He is making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. It’s a new season. The old season has to go. I must have faith to let something go so I can receive the new. I am believing in the way God will provide even though I can’t see all of the details.

We can’t see everything that is coming but we can look forward to the future. I am just so thankful that the Lord has prepared what is next in our lives. I’ll keep asking for his wisdom and for his permission to move into new seasons, but I’ll do it knowing that he likes to do new things. It’s His Thing! We have his permission to look for the new things. Are you looking for those things?