Waiting on God in Twisted Times

God  He knows "Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart be courageous.  Wait for the LORD."  Psalm 27:14
As I read letter from inmates all across the country, I see a common thread: that of waiting.  Waiting for a court date, waiting for a facility change, waiting for a class to be completed, waiting to get out, waiting for a family member to call. Being in a cell only makes waiting seem more vibrant without the outside busy-ness of life distracting them.  Life always seems to be in some kind of waiting room, doesn't it? Yes, we are called to live in the present, but there is always something "out there" that we anxiously wait upon.
Waiting is a good thing.  It doesn't feel good, but it is good.  Why?  Because we are helpless in waiting. In waiting, we trust in God to bring about His work in us. Waiting forces us to pray to Him, lean on Him, trust in Him.
David wrote this Psalm while waiting for the throne that God promised him when Samuel anointed him back as a boy. That promise of God was a long time coming; years and much suffering later. David, a man after God's own heart, knew how to wait. Well, not always.  Sometimes he fell terribly in waiting. But  he knew to come back to God in repentance and fall upon his face to His Creator. Let's say he learned how to wait the hard way. 
We could write volumes on the study of waiting in Scripture.  One of the big comforts about waiting is that God allowed Himself to wait.  "In the fullness of time" Christ came (see Galatians 4:4). God waited for thousands of years, from His promise to Adam and Eve to defeat sin, for His plan to perfectly develop in His Son.  Even Jesus waited...waited to show Himself, waited when He was attacked by leaders, waited for death to consume Him.  He waited 3 days to be resurrected. He who created time became bound by it. In becoming human, Jesus became the participant of all humans: waiting. He knows what it feels like!
The word "wait" comes from the Hebrew word "qava'".  It refers to twisting, such as in making a large rope. Making a rope takes time.  Sometimes it feels in waiting that we are being twisted and shaped --- it's a very intimate process of God in our lives. Note the photo of the twisted tree. This happened over years, not days. Small movements created the flow of the bark, while storms and heat attacked its waiting form. Note that the tree still grows upward, despite its twisted form. 
Waiting on the Lord is not a straight line --- it's a twisted path, where we cannot see what comes ahead. It's like flying blind. God understands this and never leaves us alone when waiting.  God is often doing more than we can imagine when we are waiting.  It feels inactive, but God is very active on our behalf.
Note the word "LORD" which David uses.  It is "Jehovah", the supreme name of God which reveals that He is all-existing. God uses this name for a reason. While we wait in life, time can feel twisted.  It goes too slow, or it comes too fast. We can't speed up the clock --- we are prisoners to its ticking.  God, in His love, gives us Himself, the Timeless One, to be with us in waiting.  God, who transcends time, becomes our companion in the waiting room of life.  What a joy and a comfort.
David commands us to shift our focus: instead of waiting on the event, we wait upon the Lord.
The great preacher Charles H. Spurgeon said, "If the Lord Jehovah makes us wait, let us do so with our whole hearts; for blessed are all they that wait for Him. He is worth waiting for. The waiting itself is beneficial to us: it tries faith, exercises patience, trains submission, and endears the blessing when it comes. The Lord’s people have always been a waiting people."
As we wait for life's events, we are in an even larger waiting pattern with all of God's people: that of Christ's second return. This, according to Titus 2:13, is a living hope. "While we wait for the blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ."  This hope is not one that drains us but rather invigorates us. Knowing that our Lord is preparing a place for us and coming for us is the sunlight on the dark path of waiting. 
Waiting is a twisted activity --- but ultimately a glorious activity that God invites us into. He is in the waiting room with us --- our constant Companion of love. In the meantime, let us pray for one another, bring each other a cup of comfort as we all wait for that glorious day of new life and resurrection. Can I take a seat next to you?

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