Waiting for the LORD
It kind of caught me off guard. I had just preached at the early serice at St. Clement's and was going to be the guest preacher at the 9:15 am service at St. George's. Mawejje (the priest from St. Clement's Anglican Church) had instructed me to meet him at my in-laws house in Selkirk so I could leave my car there while we drove to the nearby town of Clandeboye to St. George's Church. But when I got to Bob and Adeline's, he wasn't there. I knew he needed to warm his car up since it was colder than -20 degrees but as I waited I began to wonder why it was taking so long. Then I had a thought that surprised me, "Did Mawejje really say to meet here? Or maybe I misunderstood him." I thought I should phone him but realized I didn't have his cell phone number. I started to review the conversation we had had only 10 minutes previously. And that's when a feeling caught me off guard. I started to feel a slight panic. What was I to do? Drive back to St. Clements? Drive to Clandeboye myself? I felt insecure and really wanted the moment to end.
Fortunately, it didn't last long at all as shortly after starting to try work out a plan, Mawejje's car drove up. I jumped in and off we went but I felt like something was shown to me about waiting on God. I could compare my thoughts, feelings, and actions as I waited for Mawejje with my thoughts, feelings, and actions when I'm waiting on the Lord for something.
As soon as I didn't see what I expected to happen, I questioned Mawejje's instructions. I wondered if I had heard him right. I knew that his character was very trustworthy so I didn't think he has lied to me but I did start to doubt him a little bit. When we are waiting for the LORD, it is not uncommon for us to start to question what God has promised us. That's why it is so important to know His Word. We can hold onto His promises when the circumstances around us don't match what we are hoping to see. We also need to resist the temptation to doubt God's trustworthiness. Just because things aren't going as we wanted, it doesn't mean that God isn't still at work or that He will fail to fulfill His promises. Waiting for the LORD can be a time of growth.
Psalm 27 talks about God's character, prayer, and waiting. I think it is a great example of the refining process that can go on while we wait for the LORD. We figure out who God is ("the stronghold of my life") and what we truly need ("one thing I ask"). It acknowledges troubles and fears but ends on a very confident note:
Psalm 27:13-14
"I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD."
Fortunately, it didn't last long at all as shortly after starting to try work out a plan, Mawejje's car drove up. I jumped in and off we went but I felt like something was shown to me about waiting on God. I could compare my thoughts, feelings, and actions as I waited for Mawejje with my thoughts, feelings, and actions when I'm waiting on the Lord for something.
As soon as I didn't see what I expected to happen, I questioned Mawejje's instructions. I wondered if I had heard him right. I knew that his character was very trustworthy so I didn't think he has lied to me but I did start to doubt him a little bit. When we are waiting for the LORD, it is not uncommon for us to start to question what God has promised us. That's why it is so important to know His Word. We can hold onto His promises when the circumstances around us don't match what we are hoping to see. We also need to resist the temptation to doubt God's trustworthiness. Just because things aren't going as we wanted, it doesn't mean that God isn't still at work or that He will fail to fulfill His promises. Waiting for the LORD can be a time of growth.
Psalm 27 talks about God's character, prayer, and waiting. I think it is a great example of the refining process that can go on while we wait for the LORD. We figure out who God is ("the stronghold of my life") and what we truly need ("one thing I ask"). It acknowledges troubles and fears but ends on a very confident note:
Psalm 27:13-14
"I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD."
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