Lady in Waiting

Waiting has never been a key skill of mine.  When I was in college, I couldn't wait to finish so I hurried through in four years, taking as many credits as I could handle, and graduated with honors.  Later, I wondered what my rush was.  When I was dating, I married in a rush and ended up in the wrong marriage. While I was waiting for the next phase, I rushed into a relationship with the wrong man that led to a mixed bag of blessing and more pain.  I was laid off from my job after giving birth to my second son and worried about providing for my boys! With my usual propensity to forget that waiting on God business, I found myself trying to figure out what I should do next!

But God pulled out the stops and said "WAIT!" For a while, I didn't listen (read my old posts...listening isn't always my forte either or maybe they go together....), and finally he took me by the shoulders and said, "Naomi, WAIT."  How do I know this?  Everywhere I went, I heard the same message. I turned on the radio and it belted "While I'm waiting....".  Well I can turn that off.  I went to church and of course, sermon after sermon talked about "waiting" on God, no matter where I was or who happened to be preaching that day.  Pastor Nicole Bullock came to our church to preach one week and challenged me with, "Will I trust God even when I have to WAIT?"  She went on to say "Waiting time is not wasted time.  No matter how long we wait it doesn't matter because we fall more in love with God."

Wait...waiting time isn't wasted?  Then Pastor Dennis Edwards said, "Wait for God always. Constantly trust in God even when we don't see Him."  We were studying Hosea.  "But you must return to your God, maintain love and justice, and wait for your God always!"  (12:6) 

Constantly trust.  Waiting isn't wasted.  That's where I could feel God's hands on my shoulders saying "Naomi, WAIT. Trust ME for your promised land.  You've been traveling through the desert of choices and circumstances. Now, WAIT for a while on ME."  God was calling me back to Him...to return to him to defend me, care for me, and guide me.

I'm now a Lady in Waiting.  I am working through some very difficult and painful areas in my life, but I can feel God bringing me out of the past, out of the bondage of sinfulness and pain, and into the next chapter.  With two little boys to raise and a job to find soon, my journey is ongoing.  But I can feel the healing happening as I really wait on what God has for me next. For the first time in my life, I can say that this waiting time has been building more peace and contentment...and strength for my journey.

"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