Waiting

I believe it was that musical philosopher Tom Petty (yes, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers) that once opined, “The waiting is the hardest part.” There may not be much on which I would agree with Tom Petty, but on this one thing, I give a hardy nod. I hate waiting. Red lights are annoying; lines in the grocery store are unnerving, and doctor’s offices are pure torture. When someone puts me on hold, I have to battle the urge to immediately hang up the phone. I know that patience is a virtue - it is just not one of my virtues.
However, I am learning. I am in patience kindergarten, but I am learning. I am slowly realizing that God doesn’t move according to my daily planner. He is not concerned with my “five year plan”. The Psalmist once gave this admonition that was certainly written with people like me in mind. He said, “Wait on the Lord…wait, I say, on the Lord” (Psalm 27:14).
The Christian life is a pilgrimage. That implies that it is a lengthy journey. As much as I would like for it to be a sprint, it is simply a journey. Because of this reality, I have to learn to do what I otherwise hate to do. I have to wait. That means I have to take God off the stopwatch, and quit trying to pin Him down to my schedule.
The reality is that His schedule is the best. My schedule was planned in the limited view of the present. Since I cannot see what is ahead (nor can the psychic hotlines regardless of what they claim), then I am really handicapped in planning anything for my life. But God “inhabits eternity”. He stands in the past, present, and future, with a clear view of what lies ahead for my life. Therefore, as hard as the waiting is, I must wait on the Lord. Unlike the line at the McDonald’s drive through, He is worth waiting for.