They say “good things come to those who wait.” Perhaps this is true. But I don’t think waiting is intended to be a passive process of sitting around “wishin’ and hopin’ and thinkin’ and prayin’.” I’ve spent a lot of time over the past year and a half waiting for one thing or another, but not just waiting. It’s kind of like going to the mailbox everyday waiting for a letter (I know that a letter or card coming in the mail is an antiquated concept in our technology-driven world) from a friend that you didn’t write to in the first place. It’s like hoping someone is going to call you back when you haven’t called them in the first place. Waiting in absence of any kind of action is an exercise in frustration and futility. I am grateful tonight for the seeds of promise that get planted in the soil of possibility, watered by patience tended with perseverance. How can it not bear fruit?
I have been waiting for a number of things to happen and have watched recently as one by one they’ve begun to click into place. I am not yet in a position to elaborate on all of them, and some of them are for others to tell as part of their life story. But through all these months of waiting, I’ve spent very little time sitting still. I’ve recently been engaged in a fairly excruciating period of waiting that will shortly come to an end. But even in the midst of waiting for answers that have implications for my “what’s next” I haven’t stood still. I’ve worked on various plans, thought through a variety of contingencies, and taken a number of actions to keep things moving along while I wait. Oh yes, and I’ve been grateful. After all the planning and the taking actions and before I settle in to wait, I look around at all the good things in my life and I express my gratitude. It’s like the fertilizer that I add to those seeds I planted. Gratitude is like the seasoning that you put in your favorite dish–once you’ve added in all the ingredients and are waiting for it to finish cooking or marinating or allowing all the flavors to dance together, a pinch or a dash of gratitude makes it that much richer.
I have learned to wait. Sometimes with knots in my stomach, fire in my heart, tears in my eyes, lump in my throat, but I have learned to wait. The songwriter wrote,”Wait patiently for God and be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for God.” I have learned to wait, and I have learned how to wait. It has not been easy, but what I have gained in the midst of the waiting has been worth the cost. I am grateful for the process as muchas for the end product. I don’t have all of my “what’s next” sorted out yet, but it’s getting close and it’s all good.
One other thing I want to mention about waiting before I close (much later tonight than usual)…I have not waited alone. Others have been watching and waiting with me, encouraging me, praying for me, helping me in more ways than I can count. Waiting can be extraordinarily difficult; but it is made so much less so when you have companions keeping the vigil with you. I am soooooo grateful for those of you who have been with me on this journey. You truly have been the arms that have held me up and kept me standing strong as I’ve waited for the difficulties to ease and the storms to pass. I no doubt have more waiting ahead of me over the course of my lifetime, but y’all…I’ve learned how to wait.
