So Worth Waiting For!!!

Do you ever struggle with waiting?  LOL :) silly question right? 

We wait a lot in our day don't we? We wait in traffic, we wait for the bus, we wait in line at the grocery store, we wait in the drive thru.  There really is no end to the waiting we do.

Some things are easier to wait for than others. So for me waiting for the small things are sometimes harder than for the big things.  Like I nearly go bonkers over the slow lady in traffic, but I wait with bated breath for a trip to go see my friend.  The waiting is almost as fun as the trip because I think of all the fun we will have and every time we talk on the phone we are planning the cool things we will do together. 

Lets be honest though.... Sometimes waiting gets incredibly hard. Waiting for an answer from a doctor about the prognosis of a loved one, waiting to hear if family is okay after a car accident, waiting for the body to heal after an injury, for a single person, waiting for a spouse. Even more painful can be waiting for answers from God about broken relationships, loss of a job, or purpose and direction when everything in your life seems to be going wrong. 

The Bible has so much about waiting.  So many promises and hope!  I love this one in Isaiah.

• Isaiah 40:31 -  "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"  ESV

What we deal with in this world can be truly down right horrible and nearly what seems impossible to bear, but it is all temporary.  We have such a hope beyond all the pain and sorrow and yes.....even the waiting that we must do in this world. 

My small group at church has been studying Hebrews and yesterday a verse just leaped out of the page at me. 

• Hebrews 9:28 - "so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him." NIV

For the first time this verse brought such encouragement.  Jesus came first to wipe away sin and He will come again to bring Salvation to all those who are waiting for Him.  The English Standard Version says "Eagerly waiting for Him"

We have such a loving Savior that has wiped the slate clean for us and continues to do it for us every day as we turn our hearts toward Him. But He did not die and rise again to wipe the slate clean and then leave us.  He is COMING BACK to bring us SALVATION from this sinful planet!  Isn't that SO worth waiting for?

I think the interesting thing is the verse says for those who are waiting.  When we wait we look for something or someone.  So it is an action a state of the heart, waiting.  We don't wait without some expectation, what's the point?  The beautiful thing is God does not abandon us in this waiting. He gives us strength to go on even when others around us may fall because we put our hope in Him and trust Him in everything!

So the next time you wait somewhere or for something.... Remember..... God will give you strength..... and your waiting is not in vain.  He is coming back to save us and be with us forever!  Something TOTALLY worth waiting for Eagerly!