Let me take a wild guess here. You are waiting for something. Either a prayer to be answered, a need to be met, or an event to take place. Of course you are. Waiting is a part of life.
But why? God could intervene sooner than later if he wanted to. Why the delay?
Because particular blessings result from wait-time. You’ll find several of them itemized in a previous post: “The Blessings of Wait Time” (October 10, 2013). You can click on it below.
But recently I came across an addendum that grabbed my attention; perhaps you’ll find it noteworthy too.
First, you’re probably familiar with the instruction of Psalm 27:14 and other scriptures that tell us to wait on the Lord.
Centuries ago, in the old Prayer Book Version (which predated even the King James Version) that sentence was translated: “O tarry thou in the Lord’s leisure.”
Gives the verse a new layer of meaning, doesn’t it.
I’m thinking of an anxious child, waiting not-so-patiently for the moment aunts, uncles, and especially young cousins will arrive on a summer Saturday. How he looks forward to the table heaped with picnic fare, the games of tag and hide-and-seek, and perhaps Marco Polo in the pool.
“When will they get here?” he pines — again.
“All in good time,” Dad responds while preparing the grill.
Do you remember being that child? Your very insides were jumping around with pent-up excitement. Maybe your outsides were jumpy, too. Sitting still was an impossibility. You wanted the fun to begin NOW. Did you wonder, How can Dad be so calm?
We weren’t quite wise enough to recognize Dad’s vantage point of experience. He knew that highly anticipated events do eventually happen, and anxiety does not speed up the process. Dad could relax, enjoying the peace and quiet perhaps, before the whirlwind of relatives descended.
Is it possible that such a scenario describes (in part) the way our all-knowing, all-powerful Heavenly Father looks at our circumstances?
He knows exactly when each prayer will be answered, when each need will be met, when each anticipated event will occur.
So calmly and leisurely he waits until the time is just right.
Perhaps God is waiting until we’re ready to receive what he has planned. Might a little more spiritual maturity be in order?
Perhaps others are involved and he’s engineering circumstances to meet several purposes all at once. Joseph was released from prison at just the precise moment Egypt would need his God-inspired wisdom and leadership.
Perhaps our Father provides wait time to take our faith to the next level. He knows how contented we will be upon learning to rest and trust in quiet calm –with no jumpy impatience. How wonderful to affirm with calm conviction: “All in good time.”
Just like Dad said.
* * * * * * * * * *
Oh, Father, I don’t want to be like an immature, restless child who cannot be patient. Instead, may I “tarry in your leisure” –resting in your sovereignty and trusting in your timing — implicitly. I want to hope, anticipate, and endure as evidence of ever-growing faith. Bottom line: I want to please you. And, without faith, I know that is impossible (Hebrews 11:6).
(Photo credits: www.joyshope.com; http://www.betterparenting.com.)
From the Inside Out 