While we were on our summer vacation, I woke up to watch the sun rise every single day. The first morning we were there I hadn’t planned on waking up so early, but my 10-month old woke up at 4:15 and was pretty talkative. Then my oldest woke up to use the bathroom. So, I gathered them up and walked to the beach. It was still pretty dark out, but the faint hue of yellow and pink began to paint the sky.
My son wanted to go into the ocean, but I told him we needed to wait until the sun was up. We waited. And waited. And waited with anticipation—me for the sun, and my son for the ocean. We waited.
As the sun peeked over the horizon and through the clouds, I could feel the essence of God’s glory surrounding me.
“Have patience,” the Spirit spoke to me.
I could feel the beauty of the horizon, even though I couldn’t see everything that was happening. I knew God was doing something magnificent. I just had to be patient.
“Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11 NLT)
“What are you doing God?” I asked.
“See I am doing a new thing. For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness...” (Isaiah 43:19a)
And, then I saw it. The light path that lit up the waters and lead directly to the sun. All I could think about was Christ saying “I am the way.” (John 14:6)
My son knew that it was time, and we ran into the waters—we ran into the way. My 4-year old tripped and fell and picked up his head right as the remnants of a crashing wave beat his chest. I gasped. He laughed at the playful waters. My daughter had never been in the ocean before, and she talked to the waves as they tickled her toes. There we were, alone on the beach flooded by glory and drenched in new mercies.
I asked God to reveal more to me. I prayed for His wisdom and insight. I wanted Him to speak to me more.
“...asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.” (Ephesians 1:17-18 NLT)
As eager as my son was to swim in the ocean, I was for God to reveal His glory. “Be patient.” I reminded myself, “Be patient.”
When we got back to the rental home, we were all hungry. We needed to go all the way to the third floor to get to the kitchen for breakfast. My 4-year old ran ahead of me and didn’t wait for me to catch up to him. There was a baby-gate at the top of the stairs that my husband had put up the night before to keep our 10-month old from falling down the steps.
Well, my oldest tried getting over the gate by himself. He stood on the wooden structure, and it snapped and fell over. Thankfully, he fell onto the kitchen floor and not down the stairs. But, it definitely startled us both. The gate was broken, but his body wasn’t. Thank you, God for your new mercies.
When I talked to him about what happened, I told him he needed to be patient and wait for mommy. Oh, wait. There’s that word again. Patience.
I immediately started to play the instance back in my mind. But, this time I imagined myself in the place of my son and God as my parent. I started to recall all of the areas in my life I felt rushed—rushed to finish, rushed to succeed, rushed, rushed, rushed. But, I couldn’t quite understand yet. These are the things God told me to do. These are the places He told me to go.
I thought about it more. My son, he too was going where I told him to go. He just didn’t wait for me.
Then it all made sense. I’ve been trying to accomplish God’s will on my own time. I’ve been looking at all of the amazing ministries and opportunities He’s given me, and I’ve expected to move in them immediately. I haven’t been patient, and because I haven’t been patient, His blessings and promises have (at times) felt like curses. The gifts He has poured out all over me...in my timing could be harmful, but in His timing it is fullness of life and light everlasting.
Okay, I get it God. I’ll wait for You. Your timing is always perfect.
“We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light.”
(Colossians 1:11, 12 NLT)
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