Do you ever get tired of waiting? I do. I am impatient once I know what I want and when I want it. Not one of my better qualities. How successful are you at waiting?
Scripture is full of hoping and waiting. Abraham and Sarah waited 40 years for Isaac. The Israelites waited 430 years for freedom from Egypt and another 40 years to see the Promised Land. What are you waiting for? Are you tempted to assist God in fulfilling His promises when you decide He is too slow? Abraham tried to bring about God’s promise of a son by impregnating Hagar. The Israelites tried to realize their hope with the golden calf when Moses seemed to linger at Mount Sinai. Like the Israelites, we live in an impatient world. We expect things to be resolved quickly and cleanly without rough edges. When life does not cooperate, we lose our patience and hope, often taking events into our own hands to “help” God fulfill His promises more quickly.
Last month I wrote the cry of my heart to be like Jesus. To be wholly devoted to Him and to follow Him without reservation. I want this to be true of me now, all the time. I forget God’s work in me takes a lifetime and in His time.
Waiting on God to complete His good works
I want to be like Him. I forget this requires presenting myself daily to God as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to Him as my spiritual service of worship. (Romans 12:1) It requires renewing my mind, conforming, and transforming to His will. God is the potter who does the molding. I want to be the potter without the kiln’s fire, the hand’s pressure, and the palm’s kneading. I fancy the shortcut version with the long-term effect. My hope is misplaced as I depend on my abilities rather than God. I must allow the Lord to work in me to will and to do His good pleasure. He will complete the work. Again, I must wait.
So we live as the Israelites did, waiting expectantly, participating with God but always with the tension of not taking control to fulfill the promise before the appointed time; such a fine and delicate balance. God knows me well and patiently waits when I stray off in deed or thought. My loving Father also waits. He waits for me to turn back, give up control and see the work and glory of God, in His time, in His way.
Isaiah prophesied in Isaiah 9:6:
For to us, a child is born,
to us, a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
The wait was 700 years before Messiah Jesus was born.
Trusting in the Lord
We are in good company as we wait with hope. The story of Christmas, as told in Luke 1 and 2, is a model of waiting. Remember the waiting required of Mary and Joseph after the angels promised that Mary would birth the Messiah. Elizabeth and Zacharias waited for the son who would be the forerunner of the Messiah. Simeon waited after the Holy Spirit revealed that he would not see death until he saw the Lord’s Christ. God gave each a word and a promise. Each waited to experience fulfillment. Mary and Joseph trusted God in a way I cannot fathom. When Simeon’s hope was fulfilled he held the baby Jesus in his arms and declared with praise to God, “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all nations” (Luke 2:28–31).
As we celebrate the birth of Jesus, it is easy to fix our eyes on the baby in the manger: quiet, sweet, peaceful, and uncomplicated. We must look past the manager and to the cross: loud, painful, tumultuous, and complicated. Look up, and give glory to God, our creator. He chose to take on the form of a vulnerable human being for our salvation. Jesus is our hope, the hope of our salvation.
Enjoy the blessings of this season when you view the nativity. Then look up with hope, and praise God in the highest.
Blessings,
Personal Parables is the blog of Dyann Shepard. Get Dyann’s complementary study in Proverbs and prayer guide, What to Do When You Don’t Feel Good Enough. If you need encouragement to remember the truth about yourself in times of doubt and anxiety, this free 5-day study is for you. Follow Dyann and Personal Parables on Instagram and Facebook. Dyann is available for speaking, guest blogging, and article writing.
Personal Parables practices
- What area of my life am I feeling impatient with God?
- Am I offering a sacrifice of thanksgiving for the answer even before it is revealed?
- How can I practice releasing my expectations to the timing of God?
Scripture for Meditation
Luke 1 and 2 (ESV) – The Christmas story
Philippians 2:12,13 (NKJ) – Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
2 Peter 3:8 (ESV) – But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
Music for Reflection
