Waiting. One word. Seven letters. I've yet to meet anyone who likes to hear the word "wait."
It's not uncommon for me to hear this word. Why? Because I come from a large family and "waiting" sometimes comes with the territory. You wait longer than some when eating out at restaurants, you wait for your time to spend with mom or dad, you wait to use the bathroom and shower (unless you have three full baths like we do...but even then there are times when I have to wait), you even wait your turn for time with mom and daddy......okay, maybe that last one os experienced by everyone who has at least one sibling. I digress.
I'm reminded in these moments that, although it's my least favorite, the word "wait" it's Jesus' favorite. Countless times in the bible we find the disciples asking for Jesus to perform this miracle or that, and Jesus seemed to always respond "My time has not yet come." He was waiting on God to tell him when the time was right and He did so in a patient manner.
My senior year of high school is vastly approaching and if I am one hundred percent honest, I have absolutely no clue what I'm going to do with my life or where I'll even go. The uncertainty of the future is incredibly scary to think about. However, I'm learning to grasp onto the simple truth that Jesus is in control, even when it doesn't seem like it. It the moments when it seems like nothing is moving, that everything is at a standstill is when God is at the most work (we just cannot see it yet).
In these moments of waiting, I've been (and am still being) reminded of several of God's "most famous" [for lack of a better phrase] people who had to experience the "agony" that is waiting.
1. Abraham. This dude waited twenty-five years for his wife to give birth.
2. Joseph. He endured thirteen years of continual torture, of betrayal, of abandonment before he was given a leadership position.
3. Moses. If we were to look at Moses today, because of his stutter, he would probably be the last person we would expect to be used by God to deliver a multitude of people. He tended to sheep for forty years before God ever said "go tell Pharaoh I said to let my people go."
4. David lived fourteen years before the throne of Israel was passed down to him.
In every situation though God proves his faithfulness to his people. I've learned that "waiting is not incidental to the faith. It is the DNA of faith."
In a world where we can google any question we ever face and have a response within seconds flat, it is incredibly important to wait and "let patience have her perfect work [James 1:4].
Waiting is difficult. Believe me, I get it. Oh, the life lessons though that can come out of simply waiting.
My advice? Practice the waiting. When you enter a time of uncertainty, turn to Jesus. Though it may not seem, He is always at work. View the times of waiting as a season of reflection and of growth so that when the time comes, you'll be able to handle whatever curve balls this world throws at you.
