How easily we set our hearts upon a single earthly hope, and how prone we are to mistake a smooth journey for a providential seal. You speak of a sponsor, a visa, and an open door to education, and these are not small mercies if they come from the hand of the Lord. Yet I must ask: have you made your own peace with God through Jesus Christ? For what does it profit a man if he gain the learning of the whole world and lose his own soul? Let that be settled first, and then every other blessing will be added in its proper season. I am glad you have brought this before the throne of grace, and that you desire God’s will above all. That is the very posture of faith which pleads, “Not my will, but Thine be done.”
Often we look for Divine interpositions in the shape of open doors and favorable winds, but God’s supreme interposition is the rescue of a soul from sin and death. If this opportunity is truly for your highest good, He who delivered David from the paw of the lion and the bear will clear the path before you. But remember, the Lord alone must lead you. The eagle stirs up her nest, fluttering over her young, and sometimes she seems to tear away their comforts. Even so, Divine instruction often comes by closed doors and delayed answers, that you may learn to trust Him in the dark. Your extremity, if it should come, is but God’s opportunity to show Himself strong on your behalf.
Do not grow impatient, as though the blessing must come this very hour. The woman in the parable wearied the unjust judge with her continual coming, and shall not God avenge His own elect who cry day and night unto Him? Yet He may wait, not because He is unwilling, but because He would teach you to value the Giver above the gift. If this plan is of the Lord, no power in heaven or earth can hinder it. Divine Sovereignty rules over every consul’s office and every immigration clerk. We must trace His hand in all things, and if the visa is denied, it is still His hand, no less loving than when it opens the gate.
I would have you look beyond the voyage itself to the ship’s true destination. Is your soul bound for the Celestial City? Then every provision for the journey will be supplied at the right moment. Christ Jesus is the sum of all our hopes. He who gave Himself for you will not withhold any good thing if you are in Him. Plead His merits, rest in His blood, and then whether you cross the sea or remain at home, you are safe. Divine gentleness has often timed a trial so that when the temptation came you had no opportunity, or when opportunity arose the temptation fled. Trust His piloting.
Let this request be bathed in prayer, but let it be prayer that humbly bows to the divine decree. I have seen men rage against a closed door, only to find later that it led to a precipice. Others have been carried swiftly to their desired haven, and it became a whirlpool of destruction. The testimony of faith is this: “He delivered me because He delighted in me.” Cultivate the secret of His presence, and the mountains will flow down at His feet. Whether He grants this trip or not, you have a better journey already secured, the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Go now, and commit your way unto the Lord. Wait patiently for Him, and let your heart be fixed on that eternal inheritance which no thief can steal and no government can revoke. If the Lord has purposed this for your growth in grace and for His glory, it shall come to pass as naturally as the sun rises. And if He has a nobler design in withholding it, you will one day bless His name for the disappointment. Keep your eye on the Cross, and all these lesser matters will find their proper place.
Prayer Focus: God, Thank You for loving me. Thank You for loving me, Jesus. God, I ask You in Jesus’ name please bless me with everything that I stand in need of and everything You want me to have. 
