The Waiting Game - Habakkuk 2:2-3

We humans are curious creatures. We apply one set of rules to ourselves and our desires and a completely different set for everyone else's. We even teach our kids this double standard way of living.

Let me explain my point with an example. When I ask my daughter to clean up her toys, I expect her to stop whatever she is doing and fulfill my request. However, when she asks me to do something for her, I see no problem in telling her that she will have to wait until I have a free moment to comply with her wishes. Now, when I have to wait on her, I continually repeat the request and add punishment to the mix if she refuses to cooperate. When she waits on me, begins to get impatient and starts expressing her frustration in unacceptable ways, I scold her for not being more patient. Talk about a double-standard!

I teach her to procrastinate or put off meeting someone else's needs; I teach her to be frustrated when someone else does the same to her. Wow, I never realized that I was doing that - I've just had a revelation moment!

Please don't misunderstand. I am in no way saying that our children should be able to put us off indefinitely when we ask them to do something. Nor do I think it appropriate for them to throw tantrums when they do not get our attention immediately. However, I do think we owe our children some consistency in word and action. Maybe we should strive to meet their requests as promptly as possible while giving them a little latitude on when they meet ours. Thus, the beauty of a compromise.

Now, to bring this back around to a spiritual perspective. We do the same thing to God that we do to our children. Again, let me illustrate with a common occurrence. We ask God to do something in our lives, perhaps provide something monetarily or otherwise. Then, when we do not see immediate results, we get frustrated. As a result of our annoyance at not receiving an instantaneous answer, we pout or throw tantrums. We accuse God of not caring for us or listening to us. The reverse situation is also relevant. God asks us to do something like take a hurting friend to dinner or give a single mom the night off by keeping her kids, and what is our response? Many times we brush Him off. We are so busy; we certainly do not have the time or the funds to honor His request.

We serve God with a double standard. Our needs are important, but His requests are frivolous. We, like our children, fail to realize that Father has our best interests at heart. He knows whether we are ready for the blessing we are requesting. He sees the big picture, while we are looking at a close-up of a single frame.

Let me be transparent right now. I know exactly what I am talking about here. For 7 long years I prayed for a baby. My husband and I spent tens of thousands of dollars trying to conceive. I did everything short of cursing God. I begged, I bargained, I pleaded in desperation for Him to grant my request. Now, I still don't completely understand His reasoning for taking us down the path we traveled, but it is not for me to understand. I do know this: while I was being a petulant child throwing my tantrums at God, He was quietly asking me to do certain things for Him, which I refused to do. I always kept a part of myself back from Him. I suppose I was subconsciously punishing Him, but really, I was only hurting myself.

Hopefully, I have learned a few things since then. I pray that I will not react that way again should I be placed in a similar situation. I thank my Father for being a big enough God to handle my childish actions. I am so glad we serve a God full of grace and mercy.

I have a favorite scripture that I would like to share with you. It is the one that I hold on to when I feel that my prayers are hitting the ceiling. It is found in Habakkuk 2:2-3

Then the Lord answered me and said:

"Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time; but at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry."

If God has told you He will do something for you, you can rest assured that He will. It may not come in your timing, but it will come. At the same time, the scripture mentioned above says that we are to "wait." Now, that is not the doctor's office definition of wait - you don't sit around reading a magazine until God calls you in. We are to be active in our waiting. We should be actively seeking Him and His will in the meantime. Just because we are not seeing the answer to our request doesn't mean that He doesn't have other things for us to accomplish in the meantime.

Our Father loves us, and our prayers never fall on deaf ears. However, we often allow His desires to go unanswered. I encourage you to do as the Bible tells us - write down your dreams so you can see the answers as they come, but do not make the mistake that I made. Be active in your waiting.

Do not put off 'til tomorrow what God has asked you to do today!