Remember back when waiting was a thing? When strawberries were only available during strawberry season. When letters took weeks to arrive at their destination. When we traveled by train for hours, or even days. When we watched a TV series one episode each week. When waiting was just a part of life.
I will admit that on some of those three-day train or boat rides I didn’t see the value of slow. When I was waiting for a package from my family I didn’t understand the gift of waiting. I thought for sure speeding things up would be better. Well, the whole world sped up, and here we are buying tasteless strawberries all year long because we can. What did we lose when we lost the waiting?
Not terribly long ago, life was far more beholden to nature’s rhythms and speed. We knew something about growing cycles, transportation speed, and the fact that things didn’t come quickly most of the time. Waiting was not absurd, and when God said to wait, at least we had some reference for waiting.
Recently I have found myself asking God to intervene in a situation in my life, and the response God brought to my heart was verses on waiting.
Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord (Psalm 27:14).
They that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint (Isaiah 40:31).
Wait for the Lord and keep his way, and he will exalt you to inherit the land (Psalm 37:34).
It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord (Lamentations 3:26).
What’s with all this waiting? Well, I don’t really know yet, because I’m still waiting. But there are promises for the waiting, like strength, courage, renewal, rewards, and salvation. And these treasures are coming to me, slowly but surely.
I’m learning through this waiting, mostly about the faithfulness and closeness of Jesus. I don’t have all the answers, just the strength to keep trusting with expectation. And I’m gaining an understanding of the blessing of this season of waiting on the Lord.