Just Waiting

It seems like I am having conversations with a lot of people lately who are waiting for something. In Christian circles we like to say that we are in a “season of waiting.” That usually means the person is waiting on some promise from God that hasn’t happened yet. Maybe someone is trying to discern which direction to move and since there is no clear path on which to go, they are just waiting.

I, myself feel that in many ways I am waiting for the next thing. I have been taking cancer treatments for almost three years now. Though I am doing well, I find myself asking God, “How much longer will I have to wait until my complete healing comes?” Maybe you are asking the same thing for yourself or a loved one. You may be waiting on the right job, or the right house. Perhaps you are waiting for that right person to come along or that child to come back home.

Though it may be frustrating to hear, over many years of walking with God and studying his Word, I’ve come to believe that following Jesus means I spend a lot of time waiting. Yes, he commanded us to go and make disciples (Matthew 28:19), but he also told his followers to wait in Jerusalem fifty days until Pentecost (Acts 1:4). He promised the shepherd boy David the kingdom, then he waited for fifteen years to give it to him. He promised Abram a son, then waited a decade before opening the womb of Sarai.

One of the longest waits of the people of Israel is the time between the Old and New Testaments when God is seemingly silent for 400 years. God says through his prophets that the Redeemer of his people is coming, then waits centuries before Jesus is born in Bethlehem.

It seems that in order to follow Jesus we must be comfortable with waiting. Yet most of us are not. Our society has conditioned us to not have to wait. Perhaps in this new year we can take the words of the psalmist to heart and be strong and brave while waiting on God, knowing that waiting is part of the journey.

Father, help me as I wait on you. Help me see waiting as a time to dig into your word deeper and be closer to you.

For Today: As you read the Bible this year, pay attention to the stories of those who had to wait on God’s timing (such as Abram, Joseph in Egypt, and David.)