Wednesday, January 9, 2019

The Waiting Room

"Wait!"

"Have a seat, I’ll be with you in a minute."

"It's going to be a 45 minute wait to be seen."

We have all heard these phrases.  Even as I write this, I’m reminded of the cold, hard reality that if I’m left too long in the waiting room...it doesn't bring out my best qualities.

Waiting has never been my strength and while we’re at it...neither is sharing space or taking turns.

A few months ago, I found out that our family is getting new health insurance.  I was not excited about this.   It’s not that I’m overly loyalty to any insurance brand, but my family doctor for the past eight years, has won me over with her promptness in seeing patients within minutes of their appointment time and sometimes even before the scheduled appointment.  I will go so far as to say that she has a “zero” wait time in her office.

Now, I'm sure you think I’m exaggerating…and I may be just a bit, but there has been many times in my years with this doctor that I’ve walked from the check-in counter, choose my seat in the waiting room, place my coat on the chair, and walked over to an end table to pick reading material.

Literally, with the magazine in my hand, the nurse would call my name before I could even sit down.

Let’s face it, nobody likes the waiting room.  I loved the “no-wait” policy at my doctors office, and I can't help but believe if all of life’s waiting rooms could run with such excellent percision, then life would be grand.

In the waiting room of life, we don’t have a choice in the amount of time we spent there, but we all have a choice in how we wait.  I know this all to well.  I have not been good at the waiting game, and I freely admit that I’m still a work in progress.

I don’t like the waiting room.

Now, here’s the zinger, sometimes God’s wants us to linger in His waiting room.  I’m sorry to say, He did not consult with me on this, or I would have shared my excellent time management skills.

I’m guessing God's plan and purpose for my life my exceed the herd'm through mentality.  For each second, minute, hour, day or year that I squirm in His waiting room chair--He is fully aware and allowing it.

Here’s a truth I learned in God's waiting room.   When God puts you there, you’re not getting out any faster with a bad attitude.

...The Apostle Paul was in God's waiting room--also known as a jail cell.  In this prison, he waited and used his time to worship.  When Paul's chains dropped to the prison floor, he walked out, and lead his guards to Christ.

...Joseph knew all about God's waiting room.  He spent more than 30 years there if you count the time from the day he dreamed his dream to the day his brothers bowed down before him and Joseph saw the fulfillment of the dream God had given him.  That's a lot of waiting!

...Queen Esther also was familiar with waiting.  She waited in the wings for one year before being chosen queen.  She waited again for God's timing to be fulfilled so she would be where she needed to be to save the Jewish people from annihilation.  These famous words of her uncle, "you are here for such a time as this," give meaning to the waiting room.

I'm not sure where you are in the waiting process, but if you are sitting in God's waiting room--that's great news.   We have this hope found in Isaiah 40:31 (KJV)

But 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. 

Maybe the waiting room isn't as bad as I thought.  I just need to remember to use my time wisely while there.







9 comments:

  1. I am in total agreement with you on the dread of sitting in the waiting room, especially in the ER when I think my emergency is more important than anyone else’s. But through the waits, God is teaching us. I love that verse in Isaiah 40:31, while except for the waiting part, lol.

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  2. I love this -- yes, may we all use our time wisely in our heavenly wait!

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  3. Oooh, I love, love, love this. As a caregiver I'm in God's waiting room and learning to find joy in there. He's also teaching me patience and love while he dishes out His mercy and grace and a lot of knowledge. I'm quite enjoying it ... now. You've written quite a gem here and I love your humor.

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  4. Oh so true Beverly. I like the point you make of using time wisely while waiting. That is such a great note to self.

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  5. I have learned many valuable lessons during times of "waiting". God definitely uses those times to speak to my heart.

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  6. Beverly, I totally agree that most of us can really struggle when we have to wait in situations like the doctor's office or line-ups at the grocery store, and even more so when we are waiting for resolution or answers regarding some issue or concern. The uncertainty and not knowing how things will unfold can be really hard because we tend to struggle with loose ends and waiting for some kind of closure. Yet as you mention, God often puts us in those spaces so we grow to grow in patience and discernment and in trusting him. There is so much we can learn in these spaces of waiting that has the power to transform our heart and soul - as long as we are open to the learning. Thanks for the post.

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  7. I love how you've mixed humor with such a serious lesson!

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  8. I don’t like the waiting room either! God has had me spending time in there;) I have to trust He knows what I need including more patience and trust!

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  9. I hate waiting too. But God has used those times to grow me up. Thanks for a great post. God bless!

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