Tomorrow was not our business; it was His. Letting it rest with Him was the discipline for the day, and it was enough," (Passion and Purity 63).Waiting. Waiting. Waiting.
Waiting for anything is hard. For me it's waiting on my future husband. You'd think I hated the W-word, but honestly it has become my favorite word. Waiting is not an agonizing time in life where it's a constant wishing for what you don't have, but it's a present moment in life that is spent trusting in the Lord and giving your life as an offering every day. It's allowing God to do His work in your life, His way. It's being content with the here and now. And like Jim Elliot once wrote, "wherever you are, be all there. Live to the hilt every situation you believe to be the will of God."
Below is a passage from Elizabeth Elliot's book, Passion and Purity.
I should honestly just quote the entire book for you, but I can't do that. I'm pretty sure it's illegal. So go buy it, okay?
"Do you think God will let me know once and for all whether He is going to give me a husband? I'm in a holding pattern, it seems, and I'd like to know how long it's to go on." That is from a letter I received in 1982, but it could have been written by me in 1948. It's exactly how I felt. "If only God would let me know." But then, of course, there was the possibility that He was not going to give me a husband. Did I want to know that? Was I ready for it? Perhaps it was better to hope than to know. The "holding pattern" seems to describe a very important aspect of waiting on God. Most of us who travel by air have experienced this. The flight is nearly over, the plane has begun its descent toward the city of destination when you feel it pull up again, bank, and begin to circle. An announcement comes over the intercom, "Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. Due to heaving incoming traffic, the tower has assigned us a holding pattern." People groan. Babies cry. You look out and see the same scenery you saw fifteen minutes earlier. You think of the person waiting at the airport for you. You look at your watch and try to figure what will happen if you don't make your connection or appointment. You hope the captain will tell you exactly how long it will be before landing. How long is this circling going to go on?
S.D. Gordon, in his Quiet Talks on Prayer, describes waiting. It means:
Steadfastness, that is holding on;
patience, that is holding back;
expectancy, that is holding the face up;
obedience, that is holding one's self in readiness to go or do;
listening, that is holding quiet and still so as to hear.
How long, Lord, must I wait?Seriously though, go buy it. If you'd like to purchase the book click HERE.
Never mind, child. Trust Me.
