The squeal of excitement echoed through the house when James heard he was going fishing with grandpa. The calendar was marked, clothes picked out, and the day was planned out in detail. Two weeks later, the day finally arrived. The sun had just begun to play on the horizon and he was energized and equipped for the best day ever at 5:01 AM!
The gut-wrenching wait as the minutes slowly ticked past seemed trivial as the green truck pulled into the driveway a few minutes before nine. In just moments they were buckled in, with the ice chest and thermos of hot cocoa perfectly nestled in the middle seat. James was beaming as he held his fishing pole. The elated smiles were just the beginning of their fantastic fishing adventure.
Have you ever found yourself waiting impatiently for a highly anticipated event? Your mind continually playing through options and scenarios of what is to come. The countdown of time seems NEVER ENDING!
Our culture is consumed with the instant. You can instantly pay your bills, order coffee, facetime with someone, receive a reply to your question, send your shopping list and have it ready to be delivered in an hour, or cook dinner. The quickest, shortest route to what you want or need, no longer requires a prolonged waiting period. In fact, we get anxious and frustrated when we have to stand in line or wait. Whether it is a doctor’s waiting room, in the check out at the grocery store, or in annoying traffic on the highway, we hate to be inconvenienced by needing to wait.
The norm of instant gratification has caused us to be impatient when we need to wait.
Waiting. The visual images that flood our minds are the opposite of instant. For some, it may be like standing by a coffee pot while it brews and it seems like seconds tick by as minutes until you can pour a cup of deliciousness. You can smell it, but if you pour it before it finishes brewing you’ll get an unexpected taste!
Waiting is the action of delaying, pausing, holding on, and just being patient. Waiting stirs in us a new perspective. It builds our faith.
Faith is not a formula, faith is a posture in our heart that says I am going to trust God no matter what I see. – Ethan Vanse
God has been at work since the beginning and is invested in our lives, personally. He is walking with us through our day to day, sitting with us as we wait, and rejoicing with us at the results. God knows the rest of our story.
James and Grandpa sat by the lake under the canopy of trees for hours. Their spot was complete with chairs, tackle box, sunscreen, cups of hot chocolate, and an ice chest packed with goodies. Each fishing line was prepped and ready for the catch. There were nibbles along the way and many opportunities to practice reeling in the line and recasting. The majority of their time was spent waiting even more.
Their investment of time and tenacity yielded amazing results. They proudly brought home a string of dazzling rainbow trout along with the stories of the one that got away, the birds that attempted to steal their sandwiches, the soaked shoes, and grandpa’s childhood stories. It was definitely a memory for the books!
It would have been easy to give up and pack up after the first hour. Maybe even easier to have stopped by the market on the way home for a few fish fillets. That would have been quicker and yielded the instant results we are accustomed to expecting.
Choosing to patiently wait over expecting the instant is a new opportunity to see the amazing and unexpected outcomes unfold in our lives. Our lives will be richer and deeper because we chose to learn the value of waiting well and having faith that God is at work.
Blessings,
Kristin Joy