WAITING: WAGE 5

Are you the one who glares at the check-out clerk when the lines are long? Or, the one who sighs loudly when it takes a minute to download something on your computer? Or, the one blows your horn at the car ahead of you, the millisecond the traffic light changes? Or, the one who keeps hitting elevator button thinking that technique will bring the elevator more swiftly?

Waiting is to remain in a place until an expected event occurs. Impatience is the inability to wait for something. There may be multiple reasons why impatience is on the rise, but one stands out.

Our life schedules are over filled with activities and events which we think we must do. If there are 15 things to get accomplished, we work at a record breaking speed to get them done. When there is a delay and time is lost to proceed to the next item on the list we become impatient.  Frustration, anger and fear follows.

The world has assisted in shaping us in this face pace mode and impatient state. The creation of fast foods restaurants, quick oil changes, ATMs, and self-checkouts, receiving items and services in a hurry. Smartphones, tablets and laptops deliver information immediately.

The truth is impatience robs us of peace and joy. It does not allow us to enjoy the moment, because we are in a hurry to get another task off our list or to get to another location.

Impatient people will rush to a job they don’t like. They will impatiently wait for lunch, and then clock out time. They go to work on Monday and wishing for it to be Friday. They are not enjoying the day, they are thinking about what they will do 4 days away.

Impatient people will not wait until finances are in order before making purchase. They buy now and worry about the bills later. This mentality can lead to money issues, debts and possible bankruptcy.

Some parents are too impatient to teach their children, so they expect teachers and the school system to do everything. And other times, negative influences teaches children to veer off the correct paths.

People are more impatient with God than anyone or anything else. There is a prayer spoken on Monday morning. If the expected desires are not materialized by Tuesday, they give up on God, blaming God for not hearing their prayers.

Waiting vs God’s When

The question of when to do something plagues us every day. But, the critical point of when to do something, may not be right now. Sometimes, we need to wait.

When is an adverb to mean, at what time. God’s when or God’s time may not be our time. Patience is the ability to remain calm and not be annoyed when waiting for a period of time or when dealing with problems and people. Our time frame should aligns with God’s time frame, because He know our beginning, middle and end.

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Jeremiah 29:11(KJV)

For everything in life, there is a reason and a season. There is a time to do something and there is a time to wait. We must rely on God to guide us through, to make the correct moves at the correct time.

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: Ecclesiastes 3:1 (KJV)

Sometimes, we do not get what we want immediately, because certain characteristics, for example, faith and trust must be established.

Be assured that the testing of your faith [through experience] produces endurance [leading to spiritual maturity, and inner peace]. ⁴ And let endurance have its perfect result and do a thorough work, so that you may be perfect and completely developed [in your faith], lacking in nothing. James 1:3-4Amplified Bible (AMP)

While we wait, or while we are going through trials, fear can occur. Fear not. Trust God.

Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord. Psalm 27:14King James Version (KJV)

Impatience is selfishness. You are making it all about you. You want what you want when you want it.

Think about a baby, new to the world. They are selfish. They cry to be fed, changed or to be held. As they get older, they are taught not to throw fits to get what they want. When you allow impatience to overwhelm you, the infant type mentality is occurring. Remember your sense of urgency it not my emergency. Indicating your immediate necessity, doesn’t not equate for others to move swiftly in your behalf.

If you seek to cast the impatient monkey off your shoulder, keep in mind, your inability to wait needs to be addressed one step at a time.

Empathize with others. Put yourself in other people’s shoes. Remember the times when you were new in a position; didn’t you want others to be patient with you? Or, at the traffic light, maybe you were distracted with a child or a thought, wouldn’t you want others to give you more than a millisecond to move?

Get up earlier so you don’t need to rush to work. Every day, have small things to look forward to instead of hurriedly waiting for the weekend.

Stop, look at listen at all situations where impatience arises and where you need to practice being cool, calm and collected. In long check-out lines, take out your phone, check emails, play a game, send a text, anything to avoid you from glaring at the clerk, tapping your foot, or sighing loudly.

If you pray, believe it will happen. Wait for the results. There are multiple reason why we cannot always get what we want when we think we need it. We must go through process of having faith, and trusting God. Then, positive results will follow.

The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.

It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord. Lamentations 3:25-26King Janes Version (KJV)