Active Waiting
God is working in the waiting
Read with me while I remember a waiting time:
We all set our alarms for the dark, predawn hour. I slept, but not everyone got a good night’s sleep. Anticipation. A bit of nerves. The tummy rumbles because there’s been no food since dinner.
I had the honor of being the driver. Feeling a bit guilty, I drank my coffee anyway. My boiled eggs were eaten before the pick-up. (I know stinky, but I needed protein)Trying to be considerate, I let the windows down, though the air was frosty, trying to remove the smell of breakfast from the car.
We finally arrived after navigating morning commuter traffic. Bags in tow we found our base camp location, aptly named the waiting room. We had snacks and chargers, books and journals, pens and just lots of stuff. Our active waiting would be filled with productivity. Maybe, or possibly there would be too many feelings, anxious thoughts and worries would consume the hours.
“Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.”
We sat with him while he waited to go back. He was wearing the lovely paper cap and heat infused gown, all wonderfully coordinated with the hospital socks. We laughed. Waited. Offered to take his picture. He was not in favor.
And then the time came to kiss, hug and wave a “see ya after” while they wheeled him behind the doors. Nurses assured. The surgeon greeted. He smiled. He placed an assuring hand on her shoulder and promised to take good care of him.
He would wait asleep for good news upon waking. We would wait in full awareness of the time spent waiting.
The time had come. The wait was really on. A once empty room was now quite full. The air nippy outside was warmed by sunlight through windows. Like plants in a green house, we sat with faces turned toward the light and soaked in the sun.
Be still in the presence of the Lord,
and wait patiently for him to act.
Chairs were rearranged throughout the day to form huddles of loved ones waiting together. Whispering voices created a white noise symphony of various tones. The mood was positive with chuckles filling the air now and again.
Some slept. Others snored. A few worked puzzles. Many people stared at screens. Still others sat reading books. All were actively waiting in some capacity.
Waiting. Have you ever noticed that waiting is an activity?
Psalm 37 has an overarching theme of waiting. Wait for the Lord. But in the meanwhile, do these things. Through a particularly long season of waiting, I’ve found great comfort and tons of wisdom for life just in the first 11 verses. Here’s a sample.
Do not fret or be envious
Trust in the Lord
Do good
Dwell in safe pasture
Delight in the Lord
Commit your way to the Lord
Trust Him
Be still before the Lord
Wait patiently for the Lord
Do not fret
Refrain from anger
Turn from wrath
Do not fret
Hope in the Lord
Patience for a little while longer
Be meek
Did anyone else notice that the admonition “do not fret” was included three times? Go check it for yourself. It’s in there - three times.
Fretting might be the easiest “go to” activity in a waiting room. However, God says don’t fret - don’t worry. Then He offers all of these other activities to take the place of worrying about circumstances we can’t control anyway.
In this current waiting season, I’m choosing to pursue these activities prescribed by God in Psalm 37. I sometimes forget and default to fretting. And you will too. However, the practice of actively seeking God in the waiting creates faith muscle memory. The more I practice, the more I’m likely to seek His face, to trust and wait patiently for the Lord.
Everyone around me was waiting for news. Hoping for good news. Waiting for the updates. Surgery has begun. The patient is doing well. We’re almost finished. He’s in the recovery room. All is well. We’ll come and get you when you are able to visit.
Relief began to fill faces as the waiting time was over... one by one.
I don’t know the hearts of all the people in the waiting room ( it’s actually called a waiting room) yesterday. There may have been some fretting. It may have been hard to be patient or to trust God. That was true for most of us, I’m quite sure.
Watching though, I witnessed true acts of kindness, doing good, caring, and watched strangers share concern for other human beings. My heart was filled with hope. Love is still active in our world, and waiting can be as well.
Let's do our part. Let’s wait well when we find ourselves in God’s waiting room. And let’s love God and love our neighbor with compassion because it’s something active we can accomplish while we wait on the Lord.
