When was the last time you waited for anything? I mean really waited? If you are like me, you hate to wait. I grew up at the onset of instant gratification. I want it and I want it now! And our Facebook pages prove to intensify the problem. See it, like it, move on. See it, like it, move on.
But what if you waited? What if you paused long enough to click the link and read on? What lessons could be waiting for you in those in-between moments of everyday life?
It is questions like these that led me to write this series on “How to Be Spiritually Stronger.” As I begin to be strong, I recognize I must wait. There are no quick fixes for becoming spiritually stronger. What’s that old saying, “anything worth having is worth waiting for?” I guess I never learned that lesson. But here I am, at age 46, willing and eager to wait if that’s what it takes. And in my willingness, I am beginning to appreciate the wait. Now I am ready to learn those lessons I never took the time to learn before.
The day I wrote this blog, we were recording Chapter 9 of my audio book for The Me Disease. After being away for a few days, you would think I would have been refreshed and ready to go. I was not. Instead, I was tired, sleepy and slow. Anything but focused.
As we began recording, my throat gurgled and we had to stop. I misread words and jumbled sentences, forcing us to stop and start and stop and start again. A loud truck motored by, so we paused. I commented that I wish we could wait and do this later when I felt more awake. Suddenly, the guy next door began mowing his lawn. We had no choice but to sit and wait. I wanted to get irritated but how could I? It wouldn’t have changed a thing. Instead, we shifted our focus and began chatting about our day, our plans and our dreams. The energy changed and so did I. By the time the mower had finished, I realized I was awake and ready to go. Things happen in the waiting, often when we don’t even realize it.
Maybe the waiting is to wake us up? Maybe it is to slow us down? Or, maybe, in the waiting, we are given a another chance to catch up?
As I continue on my trek to be strong, I recognize that waiting is like a muscle that needs to be worked. I always thought waiting was passive, but waiting is very active. Sue Monk Kidd wrote a book entitled When the Heart Waits that speaks to this idea of patiently waiting. She equates it to a cocoon. The caterpillar waits patiently inside the cocoon. It cannot force itself out early or it will damage it’s unformed wings. If you tried to help it, it would come out undeveloped. It reminds me of my life. This is God forming me, developing me, making me spiritually stronger. And no one can do it for me. This is between me and God.
As I continue my journey from book, to podcasts, audio book and radio interviews, I realize that I am still waiting. Even in the midst of all this forward motion, I am still waiting. As the caterpillar beautifully transforms into the butterfly, I am being transformed. And at the exact moment God deems it ready, that butterfly will burst forth, fully developed and ready to fly. Why would I want to rush this process?
So let me ask you, what are you waiting for? Is it a new job, a new start, a new beginning? Are you waiting on God for something you’ve been praying about for years? What is it? Look for the lessons in the waiting. What could God be developing in you during this time? These times are necessary for our spiritual development. We cannot rush through the process nor break out early. When the time is right, God will release us and we will emerge the beautiful butterflies that we were created to be.
Let us pray,
Dear Lord, forgive us when we fail to learn the lessons that You have been trying to teach us. Develop in us a teachable spirit and show us how to patiently wait for You. In Jesus Name, Amen. -M
- Don’t forget to listen to our interview TODAY, 5/29/19 at 11:00 a.m. on Faith and Love Radio . The show is titled Marriage SoWell.
- If you missed the podcast from March, you can listen to it here.
- If you still haven’t purchased your copy of my first book, The Me Disease, you can do that right here, right now!
- If you are looking for scripture for this week’s blog, there are so many. Google, “scripture on waiting.” You will be amazed. One of my favorites is Psalm 27:14 NIV, Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.
