Wait and be patient...

Romans 15:4… Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled.

As I reflect on how far into this journey we have come and how much longer we will need to navigate these uncertain times, it occurred to me that maybe my hope is wavering and my endurance to run this race is turning into exhaustion. If you are reading this post today, you probably understand what I am talking about and you are experiencing your own level of frustration and exasperation. The days seem longer and the “to do” list appears to be shorter and yet you might find your strength fading.

I stopped long enough to think and reflect… have you stopped to think and reflect about what we are enduring and experiencing? And how this crisis is impacting you personally? I went to my online Bible and searched for the word “hope” and I came across this verse from Romans.

It occurred to me that my biblical worldview has been focused solely on using God’s Word to teach… teach me, teach you and teach the world about God’s love and plan of redemption for humanity. But Romans 15:4 says that scripture gives us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently (something I am not good at, “waiting patiently”) for God’s promises to be fulfilled or realized in our lives. While I wait patiently… for God to keep His promises and give me eyes to see His promises reveled in my life, I can find hope and encouragement from His Word, the Bible.

I know this to be true about God’s Word… I’ve believed it for a long time… I’ve taught it to children, youth and adults… I’ve tried to practice living it for as long as I’ve been following Jesus.

But today, I found myself overwhelmed by the truth of this verse. Or more importantly, I was confronted by the truth. I’m not very good at waiting and some days I doubt I will see any promise from God revealed. When this is true in my life, my hope fades and my soul becomes discouraged. Why? Simply because I struggle to wait; to wait on God and trust His timing in my life as it relates to my situation! Maybe that is what you are wrestling with today… learning to have patience in the midst of this pandemic; learning to trust God and wait on His will to be done. He certainly has promises He wants to fulfill in our lives and I am convinced He wants us to grow and change into fully devoted and faithful followers so that we can go into the world to “show and tell” about His marvelous and gracious love. To “show and tell” about the hope we have in Jesus! We can do that if we learn to wait and be patient. May God grant you patience and give you the courage to wait, finding hope and encouragement for the days ahead!