Waiting

It’s so hard to believe that the Christmas season is in full swing. We’ve just come through the Thanksgiving season and the annual Black Friday sales madness. I’m sure many of you waited in long lines for some “amazing” deal. It blows my mind of how long people will wait. Some even spend the night on the sidewalk to be first in line. A few years ago an Arizona man camped out in front of a store for almost a week! For the record, I have no desire to be a part of this tradition of torture just to save some money. I “suffered” for 30 minutes online and happily did my shopping on Amazon.

As a general rule, the entire holiday season involves waiting. Children everywhere are told that they have to wait until Christmas morning before opening their gifts. Many will sneak over to a gift and shake the box in an attempt to guess what’s inside. “What’s in the box?” “You’ll just have to wait and see” is the reply.

In Genesis 17, we see a man who is waiting for a promised son. His youthful days are over and now he’s staring at a ninety-year-old man in the mirror. The facts of nature are against him and his wife but he keeps waiting because God made a promise.

In Luke 2, we find another elderly man who is also waiting for a promised child. Day after day, he is at the temple waiting “…for the consolation of Israel..” (verse 25)

Waiting can be a very difficult thing. It can make us feel that our life is in neutral. No matter how hard we try, the picture around our life never seems to change. But waiting on God is anything but neutral. It is not to be compared to waiting in a long Black Friday line or waiting at a long red light. No, waiting on God is a diligent act of faith.

We know the man in Genesis 17 as Abraham. He grew weary in the waiting and took matters into his own hands by fathering a son of the flesh. This wrong decision has resulted in 4,000 years of war and unrest between the son of the flesh and the son of promise. When Abraham finally held little Isaac in his arms, he knew that it was worth all of the waiting!

In waiting, we must never lose our anticipation. As a child, I was consumed with the anticipation of what could be inside those Christmas presents that were labeled, “Richard”. I wasn’t worried or fretful about the unknown contents because I knew my parents loved me and would give me the best that they could. Do you really believe that God loves you? Then why do you fear the future? Jeremiah 29:11 says:

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.“

Let’s look closer at the man in Luke 2. We don’t know how long that this man, Simeon had been waiting for his promise to be fulfilled. We do know that he never lost his anticipation for that day to arrive.

Luke 2:26-30

“And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law, Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said, Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation.“

Friend, don’t ever give up in waiting for your promise. Remember that you’re not waiting on God but on His promise. God is always here. Right now at this very moment, He is close beside you and He has heard every prayer that you have prayed. If you will believe God’s promise then you must believe in His timing.

Isaiah 40:31

“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”