Although I hate to admit this, I am an impatient person. With all of the technology of the modern age that is supposedly designed to save time and make daily life easier, I absolutely hate to wait. Whether it is for the pot of coffee brewing, the pizza to be delivered, or even checking email, it bothers me when it takes longer than what I think it should. To be honest, I think that there are more out there that are just as impatient as I am if they are totally honest with themselves. We have grown accustomed to not having to wait and our modern society actually promotes the “I want it now” attitude. Microwavable popcorn, downloadable movies and television shows, TV dinners, ATMs, and credit cards attest to our desire not to have to wait for what it is that we want.
Unfortunately, our desire to “have it now” isn’t confined to the comforts of modern society. All it takes is a brief look at where we are, as a society, to see the impact that our desire to “have it all now” has had. Marriages in our nation are falling apart either because the couple raced to the altar without weighing the seriousness of the marriage commitment or rushing to divorce court to put an immediate end to the frustrations rather than working out our differences (I admit, I was guilty of rushing to the altar twice). Instead of waiting until marriage, many young folks unwisely rush into premarital sex; this leads to an increase in abortions or an increase of single parent households. Some are looking for the next great and easy thrill through the use of mind-altering drugs instead of seeking the natural high of overcoming a difficult challenge or mastering a new skill. There are even those who seek death now as an immediate end to their problems and frustrations instead of taking the time to work through their problems and gain control of their lives. Everywhere we go, we see evidence that should serve as a warning about the dangers of wanting everything now and on our own terms.
There is an interesting and instructional phrase that occurs only four times in the Bible. According to Ed Vallowe’s book, Biblical Mathematics, this number represents God’s creation and His creative works; that phrase is simply wait upon the Lord. Vallowe uses numerous scripture references to clearly illustrate how creation happened in sequences of four. All of material creation was completed by the fourth day (see Genesis 1:14-19), during the Genesis account of creation, the word “creature” is used four times (Genesis 1:20, 1:21, 1:24, and 2:19). Within Revelation 5:13, the pattern of four repeats itself twice: And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever (Revelation 5:13). All creatures (1) in heaven, (2) on the earth, (3) under the earth, and (4) in the seas will offer God worship that includes (1) blessing, (2) honor, (3) glory, and (4) power. To me, this simply highlights the importance of any phrase used in the Bible four times – and makes me wonder what creative works God will do for us when we face challenges if we will just wait on the Lord!
I will be the first to admit that I have made many decisions based on spur of the moment influences that have often ended in absolute failure. As I previously mentioned, not wanting to live in the barracks any longer and sincerely wanting my parents to see that I was capable of making adult decisions, I married a woman who not only I did not love, but had little in common with simply because I didn’t want to wait. I married a second time, not out of the right reasons, not out of feeling that God had brought that person in my life, but simply because I was tired of living alone. Again, in my desire to have it all “now,” I never gave God a chance to do His creative work in my life and because of not willing to wait upon the Lord, I denied Him the opportunity to do a work in my life. I think of how frustrated I get with my daughter when she will not let me help her do things that are still difficult for her age and stage of development and wonder if God feels that level of frustration towards me.
The first time that phrase is found is in the book of Psalms: For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth (Psalms 37:9). As Christians, most of us do not want to be thought of as “evil doers,” yet this scripture clearly teaches we have two choices – either we wait on the Lord or we are evildoers. There’s no middle ground or compromise. No, we will not lose our salvation if we do not wait on the Lord but we will lose our blessings and rewards. We will miss out on being in a place to see God’s handiwork in our lives and to give Him the glory, honor, and praise for His mighty works. The second time the phrase is found was also written by the psalmist David: Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God, until that he have mercy upon us (Psalms 123:2). Here, David is comparing the desire to wait upon the Lord as the examples he gave look towards their superior for guidance. A servant always waits for the instruction their master, an employee always works under the direction of their employer, and with like devotion, we should wait for the direction and supervision of the Lord before we proceed.
