I hate to wait. One time I yelled at the microwave: “Come on!” Watching it count down from thirty
seconds was just too much.
Waiting has unpleasant connotations. Waiting rooms are
stressful, fidgety places where you sit
uncomfortably until the doctor or dentist is ready for you. Or worse yet, where
you wait while the one you love is undergoing some serious medical procedure
whose outcome is unknown.
Waiting for me is often about my pride. When people “make me
wait,” I think they don’t value my time, and thus they don’t value me. When I
wait, I feel out of control. Time and outcomes are in someone else’s hands.
One of the things I admire about Christ is how He waited.
His patience was on display for 30 years. After Jesus’ birth and infancy, the New
Testament gives us no information about the next three decades of His life beyond
the single incident when He confounded the teachers in the Temple
at age twelve (Luke 2:46).
He waited for thirty years. Not turning water into wine, not
delivering demonized people or healing the sick, not preaching to multitudes. He was waiting.
Working in the carpenter’s shop, taking care of His mother, brothers and
sisters, being a good neighbor.
I am intrigued by Luke’s comment about the Lord Jesus when He finally began His public ministry. Luke says He went to the synagogue “as was his custom” (Luke 4:16). Sounds like Jesus’ life was a normal, faithful, human life for 30 years. The rhythm of His life was to go to the synagogue every Sabbath.
I am intrigued by Luke’s comment about the Lord Jesus when He finally began His public ministry. Luke says He went to the synagogue “as was his custom” (Luke 4:16). Sounds like Jesus’ life was a normal, faithful, human life for 30 years. The rhythm of His life was to go to the synagogue every Sabbath.
Did He go
with His mother and brothers? What was it like for Him to sit quietly while
others read and taught God’s word—His word?
Did He ever think, “I’m the Savior, and I need to be getting on with the most
important mission this planet has ever seen! Why am I stuck here,
making chairs and sanding shelves, when I need to be fulfilling My destiny?”
That’s how I would have felt.
But as in everything, Jesus waited well. He waited by
submitting to His Father. Time, circumstances, His reputation and influence,
daily life and routine, future and family—He waited on God for all these
things.
My problem (at least one of them) is that in my pride I
resent waiting because it means losing control. I'm impatient when I think the
control now belongs to the medical office where I am waiting, or to the people
who skip appointments, or to rush hour traffic. But the Scripture teaches that all these
things are properly in the hands of the great God of the universe. My delays are God's design for His glory and my good.
Maybe
thinking of my Savior’s patience, as He submitted everything to the Father and
waited, will help me the next time I’m in line, stuck in traffic, or stood up
for an appointment. I’m really waiting on God.
Wait
for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait
for the Lord! Psalm 27:14.
