Why all the waiting?

“The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.”  Ecclesiastes 7:W

Ever wondered why we have to wait so much?  I wonder all the time.  I will admit I have grown a little more patient with age, but really only a little.  I frequently want answers to things that simply have no answer and I usually want the answer immediately.  This must make God smile a little. 

Think about it.  When Jesus was literally walking with the disciples, He told them exactly what was going to happen.  He explained He would be back and that everything was really going according to plan.  Still, they questioned everything and even when He came back, they did not recognize Him right away. 

Why do you think there is a three day gap between Good Friday and Easter?  I realize they did not have names for the days yet, but why did God need three days?  That gap in time must have felt a bit hopeless.  During that time I could see the disciples look dumbfounded.  The bible talks specifically about the disciples but literally all Christians everywhere probably felt the same way.  I could see them frustrated.  I could see them question everything.  I can see doubt.  I can see myself do the exact same thing.  If I am having a bad DAY, I wonder why God won’t fix it. 

The gap is where we get to practice what we preach.  If I pray for a new job and get one the next day I will be happy, but I will not have stretched my potential for growth in faith at all. If I pray for healing and always receive it, I will be healthier, but I will not appreciate the fact that I am alive and well or the struggle many go through every day.  God has to make us wait.  At times He makes us wait until we get to heaven.  Then we may get answers, or maybe we won’t need them at all. 

I wonder why some friends struggle in marriage, why sometimes I think my finances are a mess even though I cause that sometimes and I regularly forget the fact that living in this country alone puts me in rare territory compared to the rest of the world.  I wonder why our sons autism causes him to struggle to connect so much that even a simple handshake can be a major victory or the lack of one can be such a stunning defeat.  I wonder why our daughter had to leave this world so early.  Some questions just do not have answers, at least not here. 

Our society sometimes has the mistaken belief that if I get my faith just right then I should not have problems.  I wonder where in the world that idea even started.  Then I remember.  We have an enemy.  If that thief drops an idol in my front yard I will never worship it.  However, I will think I am something special if everything is going the way I think it should.  Our enemy is sneaky.  I’ll grow an idol right in the mirror if I think this world is about me. 

I think what I have learned the most is that my faith is stronger.  My sense of not being in control grows.  My peace is better appreciated.  My thankfulness is more complete due to the presence of hardship.  It grows due to the lack of answers. 

What is your most consistent prayer request? Have you asked God not for the answer you seek, but for the perspective He is guiding you to?  Or, Have you thanked Him for not giving it to you – and mean it.  He knows more than you after all. 

Challenge:  For one week or even for one day, every time you wonder why God has – or has not – done something write down two things that He has done. 

Rick Claiborn