Where you go, I will go; where you live, I will live. Your people will be my people for your God is my God.

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

waiting.

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It is not something I am good at, but I find myself in times of waiting more often than not. 

Waiting for my husband to get home. 

Waiting for news of a friends’ passing. 

Waiting to move into our house. 

Waiting for a certain changes in our life. 

Waiting to have full, busy days. 

Waiting for out of town family.

Waiting for my neighbor’s heart to change.

Waiting for Sunday.

Waiting for my heart to be naturally loving, kind, and grace-filled.  Instead of unmerciful, quick to speak, and naturally angry. 

Waiting for financial peace.

Waiting for the answers to a million questions.

I am always waiting. 

 

I recently finished a book called Broken Down House by Paul David Tripp.  Each chapter opened my eyes and  brought conviction, but perhaps the most profound chapter for my life at this point in time was the chapter entitled, “Learn to Wait.” I underlined and scribbled profusely in my notebook while reading. 

He defines waiting as, “…living through those moments when you do not understand what God is doing and you have no power to change your circumstances for the better.”  

He goes onto say that waiting tests our ability to truly leave things up to God.   He puts it this way, “Waiting will always reveal where you have placed your hope.  Your heart is always exposed by the way you wait.”   Waiting is an act of grace for in my life.  My God wants to show me again and again not to trust myself and the control I pretend to have over my own life, but to trust HIM.  He’s got the whole world in HIS hands.  Not I.

One thing about waiting that has always irked me so that it just seems so passive.   What are you are you doing when you wait ten minutes for your tortillas?  Nothing, right?  Those are 10 wasted minutes.  And if I am going to waste time, I want to waste time the way I want to, not waiting around for other people. 

But not so, according to the author of this book.  Waiting is active.  Waiting calls us to remember, worship, serve, and pray. Waiting is an opportunity to grow, celebrate the goodness of God, and to make me a little more unsatisfied with the things of this life. 

Waiting causes me to long for eternity, to remind me that my life really is just a waiting time, until I am home.   

1 comment:

  1. I can relate. Miss you doll & all our convo's! Lovins

    ReplyDelete