Waiting, Waiting, And More Waiting

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. - James 1:2-4

What are you waiting for right now? What is that one thing that you’ve been praying for over and over, but the answer just hasn’t come? What’s that one thing you want so badly that you heart physically aches for it? I know the answer to those questions for myself, and I’m sure it wasn’t hard for you to come up with the answers either. We’re all waiting for something.

During one of my longest waiting seasons, my friend Elaine told me that I was logging a lot of hours in God’s waiting room, and I don’t think there was a truer statement about my life at that time. I could easily picture myself waiting in a big room, sitting in an uncomfortable chair, and perking up when I hear the loudspeaker come on, only to be disappointed when someone else’s name is called. It’s a visual that was way too relatable.

During one of our conversations about waiting, I was telling Elaine that God seemed to be taking His sweet time in answering one of my biggest, most consistent prayers. In response, she brought up a quote she heard recently. It said:

“Though the mills of God grind slowly, yet they grind exceeding small; Though with patience He stands waiting, with exactness grinds He all.” - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Now, those of you who weren’t English majors (including me) are probably thinking, “Translation please!” Well, what Mr. Longfellow is saying is that while God may seem to be working slowly, He is also working meticulously. He is grinding and refining every inch of your life in order to make it the best it can possibly be. Sounds fun, doesn’t it? Yeah I didn’t think so either. That quote reminded me so much of this passage in James 1.

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” (v. 2-4)

You may have heard these verses before, especially the beginning where it talks about having joy even when you’re facing trials. But pay very close attention to that last sentence.

“Let perseverance FINISH its work so that you may be mature and COMPLETE, not lacking ANYTHING.” (emphasis, mine)

Our God doesn’t do anything without a purpose. He wouldn’t be orchestrating things this way if there wasn’t a reason. He wouldn’t be making you wait if there wasn’t something worth waiting for. He is intentionally and purposefully working on you because He has an intention and a purpose for your life.

Now, if you’re at the point where you don’t want to wait any longer, you do have another option. You could take the easy way out. You could cut God’s refining process short and cut to the chase. You could take things into your own hands and make things happen the way you want them to. With enough manipulating and finagling, I’m sure you'd figure out a way to get your way.

But let me warn you. If you take that route, I can pretty much guarantee that whatever you end up with won’t be nearly as wonderful as what you could have experienced if you had trusted God’s timing. Trust me, I’ve been there. His will for us is nothing short of His absolute best. Wouldn’t it be a shame if we missed out on that just because we didn’t want to wait any longer?

Sure, waiting sucks. It’s not easy, and it’s not fun. Not to mention the whole grinding and refining process isn’t exactly the most enjoyable experience. But if I’ve learned anything after walking through several seasons of waiting myself, it’s that I can have hope that this grinding and refining that God’s doing in my life is going to be worth it. Whether I end up getting what I’m waiting for, or if I get something completely different, all of this will be worth it, because God’s best is worth it, regardless of what it is. So, if that means I have to log a lot of hours in the waiting room, then that’s what I’ll do. And I hope you’ll make the choice to wait with me.

I would much rather wait for God’s absolute best, than rush past God and get anything less.