Genesis 18:14 (New Living Translation):
“Is there anything too hard for the Lord? I will return about this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”
Waiting…! Ugh!!! Just saying the word “WAIT,” makes me feel like I should hold my breath—as if I am on the steep incline of a roller coaster . . . slowly climbing up . . . amidst the sharp, clanging sounds of metal . . . all before that first, BIG, 150-foot drop! You know . . . the coaster that makes you clench your jaw and hold your breath, as you think to yourself, “WHY did I ever get on this roller coaster?! I’ll NEVER do this again!” . . . It’s the roller coaster approach before you let out a BIG exhale (and scream) . . . as you are suspended at the top of the coaster
. . . and it finally, and abruptly, drops! Or, maybe that is just me!
I did a quick online search just to see, out of curiosity, what I would find on the subject of waiting. There are many calculations, but here are just a few statistics:
- Americans spend an average of 20%* of their work drive-time sitting at red lights (this equates to 17,600 minutes or 58.6 hours every year). This means that if we start working a 40-hour work week at age 21, by the time we are 65, we have spent (or will have spent) 2,578.4 hours idling at red lights alone! Translation? More than 107 days of our lives are spent sitting at red lights! This is a modest estimate, and is amazing when we think about it! (*Source: BestLife.com/red-lights, “You’ll Spend this Much of Your Life Waiting at Red Lights, Sarah Crow, September 19, 2018.)
- We spend an average “13 hours annually waiting on hold for customer service.”
(Source: www.reference.com/science, April 3, 2020).
- We spend an average of one hour a day simply waiting. “If you plan to live until you are 70-years old, that would mean you spent 3 years of your life waiting at least an hour a day (if not more) . . . [and we will have spent] about 7 years of our lives lying awake in bed while trying to fall asleep . . . that’s a decade of our lives spent on some pretty boring stuff.” (Source: https://bitrebels.com/lifestyle/life-we-spend-waiting by Diana Adams).
How do these stats make you feel?! . . . And these are just a few!
Waiting can be really hard; and sometimes, people don’t make it any easier. There will be well-meaning people, who will tell us to just be patient. This can be hard to hear when we are already being patient. When I think of Abraham and Sarah, the fact that they had to wait 25 years to receive the promise of a son, it is remarkable. Abraham was 75-years-old when God called him and promised He would make a great nation through him. At age 100, God fulfilled the promise! Talk about a long wait! It’s no comparison to the stop lights! Some might argue that maybe it took longer because Abraham and Sarah took matters into their own hands. Maybe; or maybe not! The message is that it did take a really long time.
You might have been waiting for the Lord to fulfill a promise He made to you a long time ago. Possibly, you have even have given up on that promise because it hasn’t happened yet, but I want to encourage you today. Though you have not received the promise, IF God promised you something, nothing will stop Him from fulfilling it! God will answer. Just be prepared for how He decides to answer. It doesn’t always look like we imagined it; or doesn’t always happen in the way we think it should or will. Equally important is how God is molding, transforming us, while we wait. He is changing us more and more into the image of Jesus Christ. Molding takes time. It’s not easy, but, in the end, it’s well worth it!
God is a Promise Keeper, and nothing is too hard for him. Trust Him to do what He said. Surround yourself with mature and understanding Christians, who will support you as you wait. This is really important! Not everyone can share the journey with you. Ask the Lord for clarity, and let Him guide you as you serve and wait on Him. Be encouraged, and know it is NOT too late.
Until next time, My Friend . . .
Please remember that this world is definitely a much better place, because you are in it.
God’s Peace and Blessings,
Selah . . .
Photo Credit: Keira Burton.