We live in a day and age when we are not used to waiting. We live in a microwave age; an instant society. You tell me, if you had to choose between a crock pot and a microwave, which would it be?
We are impatient when we have to wait in line at the checkout counter. “Why don’t they open more lanes?” we ask. The other day I was in the turning lane behind several other cars and watched the cycle of lights go round and round with every lane getting to go but mine. That happened at least two times. You sure could tell we don’t live in Pittsburgh or Philadelphia – not a horn sounded. We just sat and waited and waited.
And when we finally got the light I saw that the first vehicle in line was a motorcycle, probably undetected by these “smart” lights we have nowadays.
Yes we like things fast. And yet there are some things that still take time.
~Last time I checked mothers still have to carry a baby for 9 months before giving birth.
~We plant seeds or small plants and we wait … we wait and watch as they grow; we wait and watch as blossoms come on; we wait and watch until finally fruit appears.
~There are still 12 years of schooling required to get a high school diploma – now some really smart people can accelerate the pace, but they still have to do the required work.Most the time we don’t do a good job of waiting before the Lord.
If you wait for something that means you think something’s going to happen: a baby’s going to be born, a traffic light’s going to change, there’s going to be a crop to harvest.
The Psalmist said that he prays every morning and then “I wait for your answer.” (Ps 5.3b). He expected God to answer. Do we expect God to answer our prayer? Or do we just want him to do what we ask? Do we think that he knows what we need?
Too many times we think we know what we need and we just go to God with the list … here it is God. This is what I need. Now give it to me. And up and off we go. Oh, we may not really say, “Now give it to me.” But we don’t wait to see if God agrees with us. We don’t wait to hear from God whether what we think we need is really what we need. Heaven forbid if God would disagree with our prayer! Oh, that would imply that we really mean what we pray when we say, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
And now with the confidence of children (children who trust; children who depend; children who sometimes don’t know what is best for them) as children of God, let us pray,
Our Father, who art in heaven,Hallowed be thy name,Thy kingdom comeThy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.Give us this day our daily bread.And forgive us our trespasses,As we forgive those who trespass against us.And lead us not into temptation,But deliver us from evil.For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.