A Thought: The Waiting

Tom Petty said the waiting is the hardest part. I would have to agree. There are so many things in life that I find myself waiting for. I used to have a really hard time waiting for things. I live in a culture where you seem to have instant access to anything you want. Information, BOOM, you got it. Cheesburger, BOOM, you got it YOUR WAY. How to make sweet tea to try and make your wife have but you don’t have a lot of money, BOOM, google and the answer is yours. With this all around me I can get very used to the instant access to things. I can even make coffee in less than 2 minutes now. 

The thing is life really doesn’t work that way. You want to have a child? BOOM, well okay, you got to wait like 10 months. I used to get frustrated with waiting until I started to read my Bible. Over and over again I noticed that God doesn’t get in a hurry to do much. Even look at Sodom (the town that became rife with all that is wrong and evil) God waited and waited for its repentance before finally dealing with that town and still managed to spare the righteous souls that remained. Noah had to spend 40 day and nights in an ark floating around with a bunch of animals doing what animals do on a daily basis before hitting land. Moses took the Israelites walking through the desert for 40 years to get to the promise land. If you walked straight there you could get there in a few weeks but God wanted to recondition his chosen people so that they would stand long as a solid nation. Even before Moses entered the picture the Israelites spent a very long time in bondage under Egyptian rule. God doesn’t get in a hurry to do anything. 

I love my wife very much and like many other women she found an interest for the Twilight movies. Occasionally she will like to watch the series because she likes the story. I was watching one of them the other day with her. I think it was the last one, and at the end there was a big battle of the vampires and there was this old vampire that saw two others coming at him to kill him and he was like “Oh, finally” or something. Like he had been waiting a long time for his end. Thats a bit morbid and strange but that is how I have felt with somethings. I waited so long for some of of the things that I have wanted in life that when they come its sorta like, oh finally, thank you. 

God does come through though and you got to be prepared for it. You can pray and pray and pray for a hammer just don’t be surprised when a shovel shows up. God works in interesting ways. I would say that he is very smart cause I am a father now so I understand his ways, a BIT better. Many times I will have my children ask for things and I will reply with not exactly what they want. My Step-son will ask for money and I will offer him chores to do for money so that he can earn what he wants. My 5 yr old will ask for the largest pack of candy on the shelf at the store and I will escort him to the candy he has at home on the cupboard. God kinda works like that. I remember when we would be getting ready to go on a trip when I was young, and it never seemed to fail that we would finally get into the car and as we drove out of town he would seem to make an endless number of stops. I was in complete agony. I just wanted to get to the fun stuff and here Dad was stopping everywhere talking forever to people. For the longest time it seemed like God was like that. 

I know that it can seem like an eternity or that God never answers your prayers but the best thing to do is to keep praying. You have to spend some time with him in prayer. Give him some face time talk to him a little and you will find the answers to your questions. I know that it may sound weird, really weird if you are new to the concept of prayer, faith or God in general but it is true and it does work. You have to have patience. The world was not made in a day so it is tough to imagine that anything else God does will be done quickly. You have to realize that its not so much what you think you need but the things learned on the path to getting what you need. Many people have relied on God over the years and I know of few who were disappointed who were patient, observant and open to knowledge through a journey. I suggest the same to you. Pray, ask for what you want. Talk to God on end about it. Take time to learn the teachings of Jesus. Love, try to love like you have never loved before. Learn, reflect and pray and you will get what you need. God loves you, he won’t abandon you, but you have to accept him for the loving father that he is and he will shine for you and in you.

Luke 2: 22 - 32
22	And when the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord
23	(as it is written in the law of the Lord, "Every male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord")
24	and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, "a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons."
25	Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.
26	And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ.
27	And inspired by the Spirit he came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the law,
28	he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,
29	"Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word;
30	for mine eyes have seen thy salvation
31	which thou hast prepared in the presence of all peoples,
32	a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to thy people Israel."