“Waiting is Hard”
There are things we all may have in common, but one ranked near the top is “impatience.” Years ago, people were referred to as having a micro-wave mentality. I’m not sure what term is used as a description today but its definition is, “I WANT IT NOW!!!”
We’re in a hurry to complete a task. We want a problem solved immediately. Sometimes we may be guilty of trying to help a traffic light turn from red to green by saying loudly, “COME ON” while pounding the steering wheel. Evidently impatience comes naturally because King David, thousands of years ago asked a question, “ How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I Wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me?” (Psalm 13:1-2). Question: How long O Lord?
Impatience is a universal emotion that every age group deals with. The more serious a situation, the greater impatience grows. Reaching the high point of, “I can’t take this anymore,” generally means whatever the situation is, there’s nothing we can do about it. It’s out of our hands. So, we do the next most natural thing; worry and fret and too often say unkind things to loved ones and friends who would change things in a moment, but they can’t.
David was expressing feelings of abandonment, sorrow, and despair: he was asking God how long will He hide His face and allow his enemies to prevail. Waiting for an answer is hard. Waiting for an answer that could bring bad news is worse. Is this the end of a relationship? What can I do when (if) my employment comes to an end? When O Lord, will you bring healing, or relief to my pain and sorrow?
Life is filled with questions when a person becomes anxious and afraid. Most will stand in a crisis as long as they know it will pass quickly and no one will be hurt. But reality tells us, we never know for sure the outcome or it’s lasting effects. The phrase “how long,” appears four times in the two verses mentioned above. How long must I wait? How long O God will it be before you act?
These verses describe David’s distress. We can relate because we’ve been there, even though the circumstances were different. It’s important to note, David was expressing his feelings to God and found strength. By the end of his prayer, he was able to express hope and trust in God. David affirmed that he would continue to trust God no matter how long he had to wait for God’s justice to be realized. When God doesn’t answer immediately, continue your prayer as David did, “But I TRUST in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation” (v. 5).
Pastor Carnes
