IN THE WAITING
I’m sure most of us know how it feels to be anticipating something for a long time, whether that’s for that special gift you’ve dropped a million hints about, a white Christmas, or maybe it’s being together with family after a long time where we weren’t able to. We all have something we are waiting for, or hoping for this Christmas.
But sometimes it’s more than that, sometimes the waiting and anticipation is more of a longing, the longing for a family of your own, longing for the dream to finally become reality or longing for the end of the storm. Whatever it is, most of the time these aren’t things that can be wrapped and put under the Christmas tree!
And let’s be honest, the waiting can be tough.
Not many of us enjoy a long wait, we find it a bit of a waste of time, and I know I often find myself wondering about all the other things I can be doing. But with God, waiting is not wasted, it’s quite the opposite. Whilst we wait, God is at work, even when we don’t know it. He’s working day and night to accomplish the purposes in your life, and whilst you wait, he may even be doing a new thing within you. God’s timing is perfect, and even if it’s not happening at our appointed time, his timing will be even better.
Sometimes we feel like God has forgotten us, but Christmas reminds us that just because God hasn’t come through (that we can see yet), it doesn’t mean you have been forgotten. In his perfect timing, God is going to show you his plans for you, so don’t give up.
How do I know this? Because I’ve seen it, in my own life, in my friends lives but most of all I see it all over the stories in the bible, the perfect example being the birth of Jesus. A Saviour had been promised to God’s people for centuries, and I am sure they felt the same as some of us do today. But then, right at the perfect time, Jesus was born, in a stable surrounded by hay and animals. Probably not when God’s people expected, or where!
One of my favourite songs at Christmas is ‘Oh Holy Night’, some of the lyrics have really spoken to me over the years:
‘Long lay the world, in sin and error pining,
til he appeared, and the soul felt it’s worth
A thrill of Hope, the weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks, a new and Glorious morn’
This Christmas might not be as you had hoped, and there may be things you are still waiting for, but God is doing something in the waiting, and he has to come is going to be more wonderful and perfect than you could imagine, hold onto hope, and let this Christmas season be a time that hope is renewed, because he is on his way.
by Abbie Davies Dec 21st 2022
