Worth the While
March 9, 2019
I’ve never been good at waiting, even though I am a good equal opportunity impatient waiter. What I mean is that even though I do not like to wait in line, or wait for something or some event to arrive, or for me to depart, or wait for a dental appointment, I’m equally impatient waiting for good things as I am waiting for bad things. As a child, I did not like waiting for Christmas to arrive any more than I liked waiting for a cavity to be filled. As an adult, I am still impatient and disdainful of waiting in line to get on the Magic Kingdom monorail as I am waiting for a root canal. I’m an equal opportunity, impatient person, with a clear anxiety for all things dental!
And recently, in my hometown in Pennsylvania, I was reminded of how much I dislike waiting. Many new eating establishments have opened as part of a multifaceted “facelift” of sorts in Newtown, and the waiting time is one to endure, especially in the opening weeks of the restaurant. In time, if I wait long enough, the waiting goes away…after the newness of the eatery wears off. That’s when I frequent the new restaurants – two months or so after opening-so I can avoid waiting for the red lights of my restaurant pager to light up indicating my wait is over and my table is ready.
And once that experience is over, I have to decide if was ‘worth the while’! If the food is great, then I declare it was worth waiting for; however, if the fare was fair, then it was not ‘worth the while’!
All of this waiting, reminded me of the prophet Isaiah’s words about waiting:
“but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31)
Even though these words were penned centuries ago, they are as current as the opening of Harvest Grill and Turning Point in Newtown, PA. And the “worth the while” is far more significant and trustworthy!
Those of us who wait for the Lord will find that four things happen when we wait:
- We gain new strength (while waiting we receive a fresh strength)
- We get a better perspective (like eagles, who can spot fish in a lake several miles away, we get perspective on our situation)
- We will not tire (future tense-extra energy will be ours to use)
- We will not faint (we are able to persevere)
During our periods of waiting we may feel as though nothing is happening because we do not always see what the Lord is doing. We may even tell ourselves that our waiting is in vain and a waste of time because nothing about our situation is going to change. It’s not worth the while!
Waiting may not be enjoyable but it is certainly worth it, especially when we are waiting on the Lord. A few verses beyond Isaiah 40:31, we read:
“fear not, for I am with you;
be not dismayed, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10)
