God Reflection: I Wait

I don’t do waiting well.

Doctors notoriously want me to arrive 20 minutes early so I can wait until 45 minutes after my prescheduled appointment time to enter their windowless and claustrophobic examination room.

Have you ever entered a store that habitually makes the wait in a checkout line an art form?

Gasoline lines, television ads, telephone answering systems, technical assistance, airport security lines, traffic jams, restaurants, stop lights, the post office counter—you get the point—after six decades I still lack good waiting skills.

Is it possible the practice i receive with all of the little delays of life, prepare me for the one big wait of my earthly existence—the return of Jesus?

I couldn’t believe it. Just as I finished the line above my Internet provider went offline. Frustration led to telephone calls. Telephone calls led to bad news. I would have to wait.

I would wait six hours for the connection to come back online. I gave up and went to make copies of family prints. Halfway through the process the retailer’s machine stopped. More “wait practice.”

Waiting remains difficult no matter the amount of practice.

I await the return of Jesus. However, I can do nothing to speed his arrival.

I wait in prayer. I wait in praise. I wait in service. I wait attempting to listen to the voice of God. I wait through communion. I wait with family and friends. I wait with the church. I wait as I go through seemingly mundane portions of life. I wait when I fall. I wait in sickness and pain. I wait through sorrow and deep grief. I wait when all seems well.

The truth is I do none of the above well.

I do have a secret to get me through the wait.

Jesus offered me a deal and I accepted.

He agreed to take care of my sin and the gazillion times I do “waiting” bad. He agreed to redo heaven and earth to rid forever all future frustrations of the wait. He promised to create a new heaven and a new earth where my life will be perfect.

My part of the contract is this. I agreed to trust and serve Him and I agreed to wait and be ready for His return.

I live life in anticipation of the advent of Christ’s second coming. I don’t do it well but I do it in trust as I become all the more anxious to see the descending Savior.

Have you thought about the final advent lately?

Stay tuned.

Dr. Gary J. Sorrells – Reflecting on the Advent of God.

Gary@GodReflection.org