WAITING

salm 27:14—Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

Psalm 33:20—We wait in hope for the Lord; He is our help and our shield.

Psalm 130:5—I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His word I put my hope.

Isaiah 26:8—Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for You; Your name and renown are the desire of our hearts.

The subway trains at SEATAC Airport run every two minutes connecting terminal to terminal. They are efficient, effective and psychologically comforting to those who dread the thought of missing their flight. After all, we live in a culture that does not like having to wait.

Imagine if time travel were possible! If we snatched a Hebrew from Judah and fast-forwarded him from 747 B.C. can you comprehend the shock he would experience in our society!? Our food would be microwaved and eaten before he could select the right cow to cook. A two-day journey of twenty miles we would accomplish in 20 minutes. Still, he would be baffled by our surly attitude towards a red circular light, and the unsettling honking with gestures towards other pilgrims traveling. When we complained that we needed more RAM to get our computer sizzlin' he would nod his head no and tell us more rams make the shepherd's life complicated. Conversation would have little pleasantry for him among a people whose nonverbals scream, "Get to the point!" As if talking together wasn't the point!

Ah but we don't like to wait do we? Yet the Lord of the shepherd people is still Lord of the space-age people. The rain that falls on the latter is no faster than what fell on the former. The prayers of those who followed YAHWEH reached the ears of the Almighty no slower than our prayers find Him today. He needs no fax, or high-speed modem. He is not impressed by our speed. He is concerned with our character. Just as He was concerned with their character.

Patience is not enhanced by technology. Hope isn't fulfilled by speed. Are you restless inside like the churning waves of a wind-swept ocean? Are you weary of waiting? Do you call on God to show you the way through the endless valley of doubt only to find more fog? Are you tired of hoping for answers that seem written with invisible ink? Are you sick of praying to a God whose voice seems as silent as dew?

Cheer up! Take heart! The Lord your God knows your situation. He has not vanished. There is growth to be gained in waiting. "But you must return to your God; maintain love and justice, and wait for your God always" (Hosea 12:6).

Inspiration

Abraham endured for twenty-five years without any sign of fulfillment. The majority of us know nothing about waiting; we don’t wait, we endure.—Oswald Chambers in Not Knowing Where