Learning to wait can teach us patience and lead us to peace.
When I was a kid, my mama used to drive a van load of us to Six Flags every summer. Sometimes we even went twice. We looked forward to it every year and I was so excited about it the night before, I could hardly sleep.
It was a two hour drive from our house to Atlanta and it seemed to take forever to get there. When we finally arrived, we had a system. We hit each ride in order, so we didn’t miss any. We didn’t skip any even if there was a line.
In fact, if there was a long line, Mama would suggest we get a snack or a drink to consume while we waited. It never occurred to us to skip a ride because we had to wait. Due to the fact that we always brought a load of some of our most favorite people in the world with us, we had people to talk to in line. Besides, for the most part, the lines got us out of the Georgia summer heat.
The rides were usually worth the wait.
But, people don’t like to wait. These days, at Six Flags, you can pay extra, on top of your already expensive ticket and avoid waiting in lines, by purchasing a Fast Pass. You get to go to the front. Since we don’t like to wait on anything, Six Flags will help all of those impatient people out, for a fee.
The entire idea of refusing to wait in a line at an amusement park, baffles me. I remember my friends and I as teens, always looking out for cute boys in the queue lines. Those lines were also a way to get a quick break. I never considered waiting for a ride to be a bad thing.
I’m not sure the fast movement has been very beneficial for us. Fast food has made us obese. Fast meals have also done away with family time around the table, where everyone talks about their day. Driving fast will get us a speeding ticket. Jumping in an out of relationships too quickly, brings us nothing, but heartache. The list goes on.
God’s way is a different way. The Bible teaches us that waiting is not a bad thing. It builds, patience, faith, trust and character. Jacob waited for fourteen years to marry Rachael. It was thirteen years from when Joseph was sold into slavery and when he was finally set free. Jesus endured forty days and nights of temptation from Satan in the wilderness before he finally left him alone.
There are times in our lives when we are called to wait on God’s timing and it’s usually timing that we don’t understand. If we never have to wait on the little things along the way, like waiting for a ride at an amusement park, or for a cake to bake, can we possibly have the patience or perseverance when we need it?
And often times there’s rest in the waiting, and there’s fellowship and there’s grace. There’s really no way to know what we might miss if we always refuse to wait.
Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂