Life seems to be waiting. The next step. The next stage.
The Bible reminds us of those whose faith was expressed and refined in waiting.
Even those of us who have the revelation of the new covenant are waiting for the fulfilment of all things.
And our lives are marked by waiting as we move from season to season.
That process, and the consistency and hope that it cultivates are the hallmarks of Christian faith.
J.D. Greear reflects on the excruciating circumstances through which Biblical figures continued waiting, continued growing in faith:
Maybe you are in a posture of waiting right now, and it feels dark. You may be confused or even feel abandoned.
Waiting is often a season of longing for something to be set right. Injustice seems to reign all around you; maybe you yourself have been the victim of it. Maybe you, like Anna, are yearning for some need to be fulfilled. Life just hasn’t turned out the way you expected. Maybe you are grieving the death of a child or another miscarriage. Maybe you are mourning a broken relationship. You’ve tried everything you know to try. You’ve gotten advice and prayed and believed and worked hard.
But still, things aren’t better.
Lamentations 3:25 says, “The LORD is good to those who wait for him …” The prophet Isaiah says, “Blessed are all who wait for him” (Isaiah 30:18 NIV) and, “… those who wait for me shall not be put to shame” (Isaiah 49:23 ESV).
God will not disappoint those who wait for him. He will not let you be put to shame. No one who has ever waited on God has ever been let down. You will not be the first.
Waiting is an essential, even appointed, part of the Christian life. We’re all waiting for the second coming of Christ, for the new heaven and the new earth, for Jesus to come and make things right and for all the sad things in our lives to come untrue..
mgpcpastor's blog 