The Waiting is the Hardest Part

I loved pulling my own teeth. When I was a kid, I wiggled every tooth that was loose until it came out, usually on the same day. Come to think of it, I've never liked waiting. I had Jessica's engagement ring for 6 hours before I proposed. And when we raised enough money to start Ranger's new R/C truck skill (Yaaay!) at our fall banquet, it took a fair amount of willpower for me to not run out and buy the new R/C trucks.

This attitude makes its way into every part of my life. When something goes awry in my life, I pray that God will deliver me immediately and take the pain away. Maybe you can relate with my eager (and often impatient) nature. That's why I struggle with verses like this:

"I waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry." -Psalm 40:1
"Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him" - Psalm 37:7

I've said it before and I'll say it again. God isn't a science experiment. He has a personality. He does what He wants. Oh, and don't forget that He's all-powerful and all-knowing.

Man... waiting isn't easy, but God operates on his own schedule. Dave and Jan are still waiting on God to sell their house. Brooke and Taylor are still waiting for God to heal their mom. I'm waiting for God to bring my brother back to Himself. And pretty much everyone who's reading this right now is wondering when God will finally answer their prayers.

What do we do?

Wait on the Lord and He will renew your strength.

And so we come, we cry, we watch, we wait, we look, we long for God.

Jesus felt alone too!

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

I was reading through the book of Psalms this morning when I came across this verse. You may recognize it from Jesus’ death; these are the words he spoke before he died. I wondered why Jesus chose to quote this verse instead of say something new to God.

So I kept reading the Psalm (you can read it here if you’d like) and saw the similarities between what Jesus went through and what King David, the Psalm’s writer, were going through: “O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest... all who see me mock me...” and on and on it goes.

Jesus really suffered. Not just physical pain, but a far greater pain: a broken relationship. When Jesus died, all the sins of the world were poured out on him. God the Father can’t be around sin, or shall I say, sin can’t be around him, so he had to turn his back on the world’s greatest sinner, Jesus. Ouch. God didn’t answer Jesus’ prayer and Jesus suffered as a result.

Let me cut to the chase: do you feel abandoned by God because he isn't answering your prayers? Do you know someone who is in great pain and feels like God is distant? Call out to God. He never promised a painless life, but he did promise that he’d never leave us or forsake us. He probably won’t answer your prayer the way you want it answered, but he does work out everything for the good of those who love him. He will carry you through the most difficult times of your life.

If you need prayer for anything, throw your request in the comments or send me an email: greg AT rlbc DOT ca

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Here's one of my favourite camp videos from this summer:

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