Oh my goodness! I can hardly believe that I have five minutes to sit here and write to you! I almost feel as if I have forgotten how to write, what to say and certainly how to be witty! Our summer has been full of heat, humidity, weddings, swim meets, VBS, humidity and more humidity! There’s nothing that quite defines a summer in the state of Virginia like tree frogs and humidity.
So, I sit here in a peculiar frame of mind because it seems that this is a time of waiting…for everyone, including myself! In the last several days I have talked to no less than ten people who are frustrated with the heaviness of waiting on something! Waiting on the weekend, waiting on the job, waiting on a specific date, waiting for something to be over, waiting on God to hurry up and MOVE, waiting for the world to change etc; Generally, we wait patiently for a day or two, maybe a week if we are really persevering but for the most part I’ve never met anyone who “waits well”. In our microwave society we have conditioned ourselves to not wait for anything. I get insolent having to wait for a cup of coffee to brew if it takes 1 ½ minutes much less an entire pot! So, it begs the question, “Is there a way that we can teach ourselves to ‘wait well’”?
In relying on my trusty biblegateway.com search there is one passage in particular that gives us instructions on waiting. In Luke 12, Jesus is teaching to His disciples. Although there were multitudes around Him that would resemble something of a modern day mosh pit, Jesus specifically addresses His disciples. So listen up girls and take notes!
Waiting well involves waiting without, yes, WITHOUT anxiety. In verses 22-31 of Luke chapter 12, is the very familiar passage about birds of the air and lilies of the field. But in verse 29 Jesus plainly says, “and don’t worry!” There you have it, plain as day, DO NOT WORRY! Then He follows up in v. 30-31 by saying (as I paraphrase), “all the rest of humanity seeks after food and clothing and as your Daddy I know that you need these things but instead, you as my children, seek my kingdom first and all these things will be added to you.”
There is a second part to waiting well here in these verses. We are to wait being busy about His kingdom. Jesus says, seek me first! When I set down to prioritize, which happens to be multiple times daily as an avid list maker, I put the most important thing at the top of the list. The thing that must get done before anything else goes in the numero uno spot. Everything else is a distraction until I can check that one thing off my list. The same applies here. The idea is that we will be so consumed with seeking Him that the secondary, material things take a back seat. The problem is that we have made the secondary things primary! And let me say right now, I am guilty. I will have no problem gnawing your arm right off if you get in the way of dinner and we won’t even discuss the carnage that might ensue if you determine to prohibit me from finding the nearest Ross, TJ Maxx or Marshall’s! So, let’s confess our mixed up priorities and get them straight, first things first!
Thirdly, we are to wait expectantly. In the latter part of the chapter (12:35-38), Jesus begins a parable about a household of servants that are waiting on their master to return from being out for the evening. The exact words of instruction He gives to them are “be dressed for action and keep your lamps burning.” The imagery here is of servants who are standing at the door waiting for their master to knock so they can greet Him. They aren’t asleep with the lights off! Sometimes we are just asleep with the lights off! But the Lord encourages us to wait in expectation for what He is going to do. Okay, so far we are waiting expectantly, without anxiety, being busy about His kingdom.
Fourthly we are to wait in perseverance. So, how many times have you prayed and asked the Lord to move and then given up on that prayer after a while determining that it will never happen? We don’t have to go deep into the bible to find several women who were prayer warriors! These women persevered in prayer and clung to the faithfulness of God.
Sarah, Rebecca and Rachel were all barren! These women were the three matriarchs that were to give birth to the chosen lineage of Christ! Isaac, Jacob and Joseph were born of women who petitioned the Lord year after year in prayer for God to open their wombs. What a testimony to persevering during a time of waiting on the Lord! Our focal text even says, “if (the master) comes in the second or third watch of the night, and finds them awake, blessed are those servants!” The second watch and third watches were between the hours of 9pm and 3am so we get a glimpse of the perseverance that these servants embodied by waiting up late into the night for their master.
Lastly, in order to wait well we must wait obediently. In verse 42, Jesus is giving a job description for a faithful and wise manager and in v. 43 He pronounces a blessing on the servant “whom his master will find so doing when he comes.” The manager was doing his job! What a novel idea for us! We spend so much time being consumed with the next thing or trying to figure out God’s will for tomorrow that we miss what He is wanting to do today. God’s will for you is what you are doing right now! As long as it isn’t illegal or immoral then you are in the center of His will. Thankfully, our God doesn’t play divine “Let’s Make a Deal” from His throne while we squirm to decide which door we should choose. Maybe His will is behind door number one or maybe it’s behind door number three? How unsettling to think that I might pick the wrong door and be in a state of doom for the rest of my life! So, back to the point, the servant was being obedient and doing the thing that the master had given him to do. Are you?
Which brings me to my final thought: We must be joyful in our “waiting well”. Not a joy that is based on all the right circumstances but a joy that is firmly grounded in a right standing before a Holy God accomplished through the atonement of Jesus Christ the Righteous. Regardless of what life may bring, one thing is sure for us as children of God, we are reconciled and redeemed eternally. I will leave you with this encouragement from James 1:2-4, “Count it all joy my sisters when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience and let patience have its perfect work that you may be complete lacking nothing!” Wait well girls, wait well!
