In The Waiting
Posted: Wednesday, March 24, 2010 by Allen King inDo you ever find yourself trying to rush God? I am sure that I am not unlike most Christians who have struggled with the anxiety of waiting or who have despised the mundaneness while longing for the spectacular.
I mean, God is the God of the spectacular. Right? I've read the Bible. He is always performing the extraordinary, making rivers in the desert, parting seas, causing deadness to be brought to life, and stuff.
However, I am learning more and more that the vital issues of life are not on the peripheral edges. Sometimes, it is necessary for God to take us back to the basics. That is what God has been speaking to me for the past few months.
Several months ago, my sister released a new solo project. I could never let her know, but it is still the favorite in my CD collection. There is one short phrase on one of the songs from that recording that is so powerful. The song, "Be Still" speaks of a familiar place called "in the waiting." I have thought about that phrase so many times since hearing it. We will do well to learn the lessons of our time "in the waiting."
Can you imagine what Jeremiah must have thought when he first heard the command to go to the potter's house? He knew everything there was to know about that place. Nothing could have been more boring, more commonplace for him. Heaven has Jeremiah's attention. He is awaiting a powerful Word from God. The Word comes forth, and what are the instructions? Go to the potter's house!
He must have thought, “What can I learn there I don’t already know? I’ve watched that old potter more times than I can count. Why, Lord, I can even tell You exactly how they operate. But you said to go, so go I will.”
It is easy to get disillusioned with the routine, the tedious sameness of it all. Instead we try to make something happen. Yet, the fact is, most of our walking with God is routine. It is not spectacular. It is not fireworks and awe-inspiring displays. It is the slow steady burn of a single flame.
It is that power of routine that saved Daniel. He was already used to praying every day. Daniel did not find himself praying more because he was in a time of crisis, nor praying less when he was at ease. His praying did not work to speed up or slow down the processes of God. He was just doing what he normally did. He prayed.
The prophet, Isaiah, has been quoted countless times when he said, “They that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint" (Isaiah 40:31). What wonderful inspiration we have taken from this passage as we were made aware that if we will wait, God will cause us to take wings like the eagles.
We are so prone toward the spectacular, especially those of us in the pentecostal or charismatic tradition. If we are not careful, in our longing for thunderings, lightning strikes, and earthquakes, we will miss the still, quiet voice that comes to us in our cave experiences and says to us, "Just be faithful."
It is easy to rejoice when God is showing His adventurous side. However, notice that the true message is in the progression in Isaiah 40:31. He said, we will “mount up with wings as eagles”; then “run, and not be weary”; then “walk, and not faint.” We automatically want to start walking, then accelerate to a run, then take wing and fly. But, God says.” No, that’s not My way. You may start off flying, then you’ll come down to running, but most of the time you will just be walking.
Here is the essence of successful Christian living. It is consecrated plodding. It is about the ability to put one foot in from of the other. That is not to say there will not be those high-flying, ecstatic experiences. They simply are the exception, not the rule. Where you finally end up is in the very basic skill of walking with God.
It was as much the will of God for the children of Israel to march quietly around Jericho as it was for the walls to fall. Some days, walls fall. Other days, we just walk. Either way, God is faithful.
Very cool, Pastor King!