God is in the Waiting

Unexpected things happen every day. Most of the time they are minor inconveniences. At other times your life comes to a halt forcing you to find a new normal.

As a follower of Christ for over 40 years now, I would like to think I'm all grown up by now, but life has been a continuous journey for me in getting to know my Savior at deeper levels. I guess “growing” really does continue until you take your last breath!

I recently went to the states for the birth of my first grandson. My trip was supposed to be for two weeks and then I was to return to Trinidad to help my husband with mission’s teams that were coming. As I flew back to Houston with the plan of going on to Trinidad, I found out that I did not have the proper documents yet to re-enter Trinidad.

Some very good friends (more like family) of ours live in Texas. They came to the airport to get me and provided wonderful hospitality (i.e. family time) while I waited to get the proper documents to return. Each day was to be “the” day I would get the documents. What started out as a two-week trip began a much longer journey of waiting.

I know at least some of what scripture says…like, “my times are in His hands” Psalm 31:15. It is one thing to know what scripture says, but an entirely different thing to let it seep down to the core of who you are. Spiritually speaking I had to go to the “secret place” to meet with God.

(Psalm 91:1 KJV)

There were a lot of starts and stops that continued over the next five weeks. One of the principles that my husband and I teach in our mission’s classes is finding a new normal as quickly as possible. So I began putting order to my days. Spending time in the word and worship to get my heart settled to enter a new day. I spent part of my days continuing office work that can be done no matter where in the world you are. Thank God for technology! I also enjoyed time with my special friendsJ

A phrase in a book by one of my favorite authors, Bob Sorge has become very meaningful to me. The phrase is “recalibration of the soul”. The idea is to bring the soul (mind, will and emotions) back in alignment with the truth of God's Word. So daily I recalibrated my soul, settled my heart and trusted God in the midst of uncertainty.

As I made the choice on a daily basis to stay focused on Jesus and on the goodness of God, the Holy Spirit began to remind me of a truth that I have learned and have often told others. The Bible says in Isaiah 40:31 “they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as eagles, they shall walk and not grow weary, they shall run and not faint.” This is a scripture that God used to speak a significant truth to me years ago. That truth is that there are different types of waiting. God's word tells us that they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. So it becomes clear that if in the waiting you are frustrated, angry, anxious or fill in the blank with whatever word works for you, that you are not waiting on the Lord. You are waiting on circumstances, people or things, but not on the Lord. To be renewed does not take away, it adds.

As I read this verse again for the very first time and spent quiet time with the Lord, a thought came to me. I'm sure I already knew it to be true, but sometimes during certain seasons God places a thought in your heart that becomes very significant. Here it is…God is not just in the answer, God is in the waiting. How we live while are waiting for that prayer to be answered makes all the difference in the world. It affects how you hear from God, how you relate to others, how much stamina you will have spiritually, emotionally and physically for the journey.

Father God, help me to wait well.