Thought for week ending 20 March

 

Psalm 27:14

Wait patiently for the Lord.  Be brave and courageous.  Yes, wait patiently for the Lord. (NLT)

Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. (NIV)

I don’t think waiting is something any of us are comfortable with these days.  We wait for things we have ordered arriving by post or courier, we wait for folks returning calls, messages or emails, we can’t wait until it’s time to go on holiday, we wait for exam results or the phone call or letter that lets us know if we have been successful in a job application, we wait for buses or taxis.  There’s a lot of waiting in this life.  My personal gripe is waiting at temporary traffic lights due to roadworks.  I try to take alternative routes to miss them but always seem to get stuck at another set no matter what way I decide to go.

It is a subject that must ignite the imagination of those that are creative based on the amount of songs that have ‘waiting’ in the title.  (I’m thinking of right here waiting by Richard Marks, I knew you were waiting for me by George Michael and Aretha, I’ll be waiting by Adele – there’s lots)  These songs often capture the emotional complexity of anticipation, longing and uncertainty.  These universal feelings make the theme relevant across different genres and situations whether in love, life or self-discovery.

It is certainly not a new thing because there was a lot of waiting recorded in the bible from Genesis to Revelation.  Abraham and Sarah were promised that their descendants would be ‘as numerous as the stars’ yet they had to wait twenty-five years before their son Isaac was born.  When the children of Israel were freed from their Egyptian captivity, they had to wait forty years before entering the land that was promised to them.  The Prophet Samuel anointed David as King while he was still young but had to wait until Saul and Jonathan had died before he could take the throne.  In Luke 2, we are told of Simeon and Anna who had waited their whole lives for the promised messiah recognising the baby Jesus as the one to fulfil that promise when his parents brought him to the temple.

Our passage from the book of Psalms teaches us that waiting is a necessity and we ought to be patient and not give up.  The Lord will fulfil everything that is part of his plan at a time pre-determined by him and him alone and if we trust in him, we will not be disappointed and the waiting will have been worthwhile.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, help us to be patient and trusting knowing that we are part of your plan for our lives that is simply beyond our comprehension.  Strengthen our hearts as we look to you for guidance and answers and grant us the patience not to grow weary as we wait.  May all the praise and glory be yours Lord, Amen