“For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, saying, "Surely I will bless you and multiply you." And thus Abraham, having patiently waited, obtained the promise. For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.” Hebrews 6:13-20 ESV
I am NOT a patient person. I would have to say that most times I resemble a child at Christmas time, eagerly awaiting the time to open my presents. Each hour I wait seems like an eternity. When the time finally arrives, I can't move fast enough to get to the Christmas tree and tear open all those beautifully wrapped gifts.
Try as I might, I can not make time move any faster. Waiting simply is just part of life. No matter how fast paced and hectic my schedule may be, I still run up against times and places where I have no choice but to stop and sit or stand in a long line. (Ever been in a long TSA line...the worst!)
The Bible often connects waiting with faith. (And rightly so!) Sometimes Scripture even uses the two words interchangeably. While we might not like it, waiting serves an important role in our Christian life. The work God does within each of us while we wait is just as important as whatever it is we're waiting for. And I can promise you that this isn't an easy thing to do. In fact, it can bring on pain and will almost certainly try our patience and test us. Waiting demands patience and exacts a price. it is the toll on the road that each of us must pay from time to time.
God promised Abraham a blessing but to receive his blessing he had to wait...for a long time. In His time God did fulfill His promise to Abraham. And in his waiting, it turned out to have been his greatest blessing. He became the father to the whole of the Jewish nation.
I also hear the promises of God and long for God to fulfill each of them. Yet I often wait. If the story of Abraham teaches us anything, it is that God proves Himself faithful again and again. As a man, I want something to do, some sort of action to take when I wait too long. But I have learned that sometimes my part is to simply wait, while remembering the promises of God with all the confidence, discipline, and patient assurance that He provides me. God will come through. While these times aren't easy and it didn't always end the way I would have planned, in the end I can honestly say that in the end it was worth the wait. God's plans are always better than mine.
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