Waiting

So a friend posted this great blog on waiting on Facebook and I thought it was fitting to post here and add my 2 cents :) Check it out: http://gracefortheroad.com/2012/02/03/idontwait/ 

http://gracefortheroad.com/2012/02/03/idontwait/

Waiting is a tricky thing because usually we don't know exactly how long the waiting is taking. Sometimes even when we do, we have the same emotions as when we don't (i.e. frustration when waiting for the bathroom or the next life stage to begin).

God created waiting - from the time a morning dew falls to the time the sun is up or the 9 months of pregnancy before becoming a mother - God has designed waiting into our lives. God has us in waiting for the return of Christ.

To wait well is tough. I know - many of my friends are married and/or having children while I'm still single. This has been one of the most profound waiting experiences of my life. And I'm still in it. And I don't know when it ends.

However, the perspective offered in the blog posted above points out how present-oriented our God is and how we can live fully engaged in His story even in the waiting. It has been my experience that we are quick to put God into a Genie role when that's not what He wants or tells us.

God wants all of us, in this moment and the waiting usually serves a purpose that we don't fully grasp until the waiting is over.

Even recently when my church announced its new senior pastor, we unanimously voted and took joy in the announcement because of how well it seems to fit. But we waited over 3 years for this to happen! And with the name and story of the pastor before us, we are excited and feel good about the season of waiting. The search committee shared story after story of the activity during the "waiting" and how God's hand was upon them.

I appreciate the blog - I don't wait anymore because it puts our focus back on what it should - God's desire for us to be wholly His and live our lives as created beings in His image. We are to be like clay in the potter's hand that may need refined in the fire but then turns into a beautiful and useful piece of pottery.

This song kept repeating in my head as I wrote this so here's how I'm ending this thought process:

Wine, Resumes, Margins and Metahpors - Oh My.

Do you ever stop to think about what you want to be like? Stop to mediate on what God has uniquely gifted you with? I hope so. When I do, I usually reflect and see things in my life that don't reinforce the "me I want to be" (thanks John Ortberg) Recently the word margin has been ringing in my ears as I scramble to increase my productivity in work and life. I need more margin but I also want to make good use of the life space I have.

I edit resumes all the time. I mean all the time! And I've come to have my preferences when it comes to formatting - .7 margins, 11pt font, no extra spaces after paragraphs, the black circle bullets, etc. These preferences have purpose - increase readability, attractiveness, inviting, clean and concise. In my conversations with students I find I have to help them reword, prioritize, and eliminate excess, unrelated or superfluous words.

Right now I need a life resume review :) I was told many years ago to "work smarter not harder" and have tried to hold to that ideal and create healthy work boundaries. So far, I think I've done this rather well. I have consistently maintained a social life while adjusting to my work life after college. I've even found myself helping others face this reality. I've made hard choices in how I spend my time. I've done it.

The thing I notice now is - while I have done it, it doesn't just stay done. I have to stay on guard by sneaky margins and misplaced punctuations.

Tonight I attended a talk from author Doc Hendley who is founder of Wine to Water, a nonprofit that provides clean drinking water to people all over the world. Tonight he spoke primarily to college freshmen who read his book as the summer read. It was a fun environment full of earnest and hope. The students had good questions and were engaged in what he had to say. He was clear that he's just a normal guy who chose to try something and it turned into this nonprofit that has helped thousands of people and perhaps even saved their lives. His passion is obvious and each time he quotes a statistic on access to clean water or the realities of not having it, I get choked up and have to bite my lower lip to keep from confusing all those around me who aren't getting emotional. Something just resonates within me and I know the Holy Spirit is doing something. I have wanted to go to Africa for a while and in the past year God has brought me more and more opportunities to explore others stories, learn more history, see films and read books regarding Africa. I even know some people who live there. When Doc spoke about his time in Darfur and Uganda, he had a few slides of photos. Each one I saw my stomach clenched and I just kept thinking - I need to go and see it. I just do.

Right now I am in the in-between of 1. knowing I need more margin to give the Holy Spirit more room to move and 2. living in overdrive pursuing things that are important, but maybe not MOST important. Steven Covey always talked about "keeping first things first" and it's so much easier to say than to do. As soon as I want a break from being intentional, my priorities get skewed and my life gets rearranged into something not worth writing about. I want to go to Africa before I'm 30 (or at least have the money and the date arranged by then). I want to do it now because I think it's somehow part of my story. I've LOVED the travel God has brought to my life and every time I go someplace new I'm changed a little. I need more margin to allow room fro God to change me more into the "way I was made" (thanks Chris Tomlin).

Until next time. Oh and you can bet I'll be buying some wine from Wine to Water soon :)

Places I've been :)

visited 28 states (56%)
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visited 20 states (8.88%)
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