Isaiah 30:18, So the LORD must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the LORD is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for his help.
As Christmas day draws closer and closer, some of us may find some of our company finding it more and more difficult to wait for that special day to arrive.
I know I have a difficult time waiting. In fact, there have actually been times I've considered becoming a thief, just to avoid waiting in endless checkout lines in stores. There have been times I have muttered curses while waiting in traffic, just to be behind the person who needs the green light to become an even GREENER light before they will venture out into the intersection. And, I must admit, I have very little patience in waiting for my son to do almost anything I ask of him. (for some reason his timing and my timing are very, very different)
In Luke 2:21-40 there is a story about waiting. Simeon and Anna are the two people in this story who waited on God. All we know of Simeon is in verse 25, Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. What we know of Anna is from verses 36, 37, and 38, And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.
These two waited for the coming of the Messiah their whole lives. They believed in the promise that Israel would be reconciled to God through the coming of Jesus. Suddenly, one day, just like any other day each of them spent at the temple, a small family came to the temple to offer sacrifices in obedience of the Levitical Law regarding the birth of the first son. Because Jesus' family was poor, the sacrifice was a pair of turtledoves and not a lamb. The Holy Spirit alerted both Simeon and Anna to the identity of this child and their waiting was ended.
Waiting on God is difficult to be seen as a privilege, but I believe it must be. Waiting with patience and confidence would certainly be a trait of maturity. When I see someone actively pouting while waiting in a long line at the grocery store or the Wal-mart, I don't think to myself, "wow, that is one mature individual." No, I don't. Ditto with the horn-blarer at the green light. I've even seen fellow christians spend money they cannot afford, as well as borrowed money, by forcing their own timing instead of waiting for God's answer. I wonder what the end of the story would have looked like had they actually waited on God's answer? So when I see this impatience in myself, especially when it comes to waiting on my son's timing, I see opportunity for growth and maturing in my walk with Christ in myself.
As we move through this time of Advent, this time of waiting on the coming of the Messiah, let us strive to show confidence in what we are waiting for. As we struggle with the brokenness of this world and the tragedies and wars and disappointments, let us remind each other of the confidence we can have in our God. He has overcome the world.
I found this little image on facebook. When I looked at it I thought that this little slice of the pie, Wait for His Answer, was the toughest one of these for me to do. Now, I'm not so sure that each and every slice of this pie isn't a challenge for me, but I will keep leaning on the tenants of my faith and continue to mature as a believer. I'll not find perfection in my faith, but I will progress and grow. God is good.
746. Advent time and the focus it puts on our hope
747. Knowing that God is in the deepest, darkest places there can ever be, and he is there before any of his children end up there
748. Fog on the river
749. A sore back (evidence of hard work, or possibly just weak abs. :))
750. Husband finding Teacher Barbie in the Navy Exchange (I couldn't find one in Target or Wal-mart)
751. Someone selling a stove to my son for $1
752. Looking forward to seeing my small group and rejoicing with them in answered prayer
753. Finding joy in waiting on God's answer
As Christmas day draws closer and closer, some of us may find some of our company finding it more and more difficult to wait for that special day to arrive.
I know I have a difficult time waiting. In fact, there have actually been times I've considered becoming a thief, just to avoid waiting in endless checkout lines in stores. There have been times I have muttered curses while waiting in traffic, just to be behind the person who needs the green light to become an even GREENER light before they will venture out into the intersection. And, I must admit, I have very little patience in waiting for my son to do almost anything I ask of him. (for some reason his timing and my timing are very, very different)
In Luke 2:21-40 there is a story about waiting. Simeon and Anna are the two people in this story who waited on God. All we know of Simeon is in verse 25, Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. What we know of Anna is from verses 36, 37, and 38, And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.
These two waited for the coming of the Messiah their whole lives. They believed in the promise that Israel would be reconciled to God through the coming of Jesus. Suddenly, one day, just like any other day each of them spent at the temple, a small family came to the temple to offer sacrifices in obedience of the Levitical Law regarding the birth of the first son. Because Jesus' family was poor, the sacrifice was a pair of turtledoves and not a lamb. The Holy Spirit alerted both Simeon and Anna to the identity of this child and their waiting was ended.
Waiting on God is difficult to be seen as a privilege, but I believe it must be. Waiting with patience and confidence would certainly be a trait of maturity. When I see someone actively pouting while waiting in a long line at the grocery store or the Wal-mart, I don't think to myself, "wow, that is one mature individual." No, I don't. Ditto with the horn-blarer at the green light. I've even seen fellow christians spend money they cannot afford, as well as borrowed money, by forcing their own timing instead of waiting for God's answer. I wonder what the end of the story would have looked like had they actually waited on God's answer? So when I see this impatience in myself, especially when it comes to waiting on my son's timing, I see opportunity for growth and maturing in my walk with Christ in myself.
As we move through this time of Advent, this time of waiting on the coming of the Messiah, let us strive to show confidence in what we are waiting for. As we struggle with the brokenness of this world and the tragedies and wars and disappointments, let us remind each other of the confidence we can have in our God. He has overcome the world.
I found this little image on facebook. When I looked at it I thought that this little slice of the pie, Wait for His Answer, was the toughest one of these for me to do. Now, I'm not so sure that each and every slice of this pie isn't a challenge for me, but I will keep leaning on the tenants of my faith and continue to mature as a believer. I'll not find perfection in my faith, but I will progress and grow. God is good.
746. Advent time and the focus it puts on our hope
747. Knowing that God is in the deepest, darkest places there can ever be, and he is there before any of his children end up there
748. Fog on the river
749. A sore back (evidence of hard work, or possibly just weak abs. :))
750. Husband finding Teacher Barbie in the Navy Exchange (I couldn't find one in Target or Wal-mart)
751. Someone selling a stove to my son for $1
752. Looking forward to seeing my small group and rejoicing with them in answered prayer
753. Finding joy in waiting on God's answer
I'm terrible at waiting!
ReplyDeleteI feel ya, girlfriend. :)
ReplyDeleteMy husband spoke on the passage about Anna and Simeon yesterday. I love the image of them finally seeing the promised Messiah in their old age, after years of waiting and steadfastness and patience.
ReplyDeletenice..i like the graphic....and i know i have jacked things up in the past by trying to force things before their time....
ReplyDeleteI was driving home tonight from doing some last minute shopping and on the radio they were talking about just this - waiting on God and how waiting on Him shows our trust in Him! So a big AMEN to what you have written - I know I have much maturing to do in this area...'nice' convicting post! ;) (thank you!)
ReplyDeleteMERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY!!!!!
be careful about praying for patience...the only way to get it is practice..
ReplyDeleteIf I dare say it? One of your best posts. Thank you. We moderns living in a post microwave society want everything right now. Boy we are spoiled. Where did we get such an entitled attitude? Our fallen nature without God. So glad God is rich in mercy and long suffering.
ReplyDeleteYes - God is truly good.
ReplyDeleteI've heard this before, but I think it may be worth the risk. :)
ReplyDeleteLove this post friend! Waiting for His answer is hard for me too because I'm always trying to add my own answer to the mix. ;)
ReplyDelete