waiting

This post relates to one I wrote a couple of weeks ago . . . I've had a number of conversations with friends lately about the difficulties & hardships that are innate to life in a fallen world - and the waiting that is part of those seasons, whether we like it or not. 

Waiting is not something I'm good at or enjoy.  Part of it is my Type A personality: I like efficiency, tying up loose ends, providing resolution, etc.  Another part of it is the American culture I live in: we are used to getting what we want, when we want it - and much of the time have the means to make it happen on our own terms.

So when I find myself in the midst of situations that are really hard (and I mean really & truly hard - the kind of difficulty that you feel in your soul) - and that I can't control or change, waiting is not what I am excited to do.  And it's in these times that my conversations with God include things like: 
- What exactly is Your purpose in this situation?  I am really trying to see it & to maintain hope in light of it - but I'm not sure how much longer I can hang in there without knowing the "why" behind this.
- How could this circumstance be for my good or for Your glory?? I'm not seeing much good or glory in this! 
- You tell me to pray boldly & persistently - and yet I have heard no response on this from you in a long, long time.  What is that about?

A friend recommended a Tim Keller sermon to me several months ago that digs into all of this via the book of Habakkuk.  If anything in this post resonates with your current circumstances, I cannot commend this sermon to you highly enough.  It has been Truth I have needed to hear in the midst of my own season of difficulty, wrestling, & waiting.  You can access the Redeemer sermon store here.  In the "sermon/series title" box, type "waiting by faith."  In the list that pops up, the sermon you want to buy should be the first one: "Waiting and Living by Faith" by Keller.  It will be the best $2.50 you spend this week, I promise!