If you trust in his goodness and provision, life will be anything but boring. Wait on the Lord and let good things come in his timing. It’ll be an amazing adventure.
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada and you might not remember this.
Actually, if you are in today’s millennial generation you definitely will not remember this, but people used to listen to the radio all day, hoping to hear their favorite disc jockey play their favorite new song. When I was in 8th grade, my sister gave me her old transistor radio and during that summer? I listened to Kirby Scott on WCAO, waiting for the moment he’d play The Everly Brothers’ latest hit. And when the song finally came on? It was such fun, it was such a big deal.
But now, people listen to favorite songs whenever they want. Every top 40s hit going back to the 1950s is at their fingertips. Everything is on their “favorites” playlist on an iPhone. You don’t have to wait for The Everly Brothers to sing their number one hit; now, it’s on demand, it’s instant, at your fingertips, just push “repeat.” And you can say, “Hey, Alexa, play the Everly Brothers” and it’ll play to your heart’s content. Or maybe it’s your heart’s discontent, because [and here’s my point] it gets boring to get what you want, anytime you want it. I think it was better when you waited for something in anticipation, when the song was a surprise, and the joy was spontaneous.
That’s why Proverbs 25:27 speaks to this when it says, “It is not good to eat too much honey.” And there is a powerful principal in that proverb, because even though honey is tasty and sweet, you’re asking for trouble when you eat too much of a good thing. Yet in today’s we-can-have-it-now culture, it’s exactly what we do. No wonder so many people find life boring. Even Christians find life boring! We’re impatient. We lack the discipline to wait for good things [or even to wait on God]. We’d rather eat from the world’s banquet now! But good things that truly satisfy come from God’s hand. And he will give good things in his timing.
And oh, aren’t his best things worth waiting for – like an intimate, fulfilling fellowship with the Lord Jesus? Union with him is so satisfying and pleasurable, but it doesn’t come at the snap of a finger. It’s not on demand or instant. No, rather, we have to practice a little delayed gratification. And I am so happy to wait on the Lord; I do everything in this life I can do to prepare myself for that day when I am in his physical presence. There is joy in his presence and pleasures at his right hand, forevermore. So, Christian, join me in saying no to what the world offers and join me in waiting for something or I should say someone, who is so much better. Waiting on God develops strong character; waiting cultivates self-control, patience, perseverance, endurance, and godliness. And so, the Bible wisely repeats over and over, “Wait on the Lord.” Again, I say, wait on the Lord. And let good things come in his timing. Withhold a little self-gratification; trust in his goodness and provision and life will not be boring, but always be an adventure.
Father, what sweet gifts you deliver to us – often totally unexpected. Like days when we suddenly feel your smile, on no special occasion, for no particular reason, shining down on us out of a gray sky. The good we hoped for may be delayed, it may be withheld, but oh, the good you give us in your timing and wisdom is always better still. You, Father, are the good thing, and we can never get too much of you. In your name, Amen.
© Joni and Friends