The theme of my week, or should I say year, has been “wait.” I like to joke with people that I have a very high need for closure. If you really want me to be honest, that means I like to get things done quickly – I want them done NOW! Fortunately (or unfortunately – depending on how you look at it), I’ve always been able to accomplish quite a bit in a very short amount of time. Recently, however, there have been a number of things that have come into my life that I cannot control. Even though I am ultimately responsible for the outcome, I must rely on others to complete the work. This is really hard for me.
Last Friday, ICSV parent, Chris Elledge, came to share with us at morning devotions. He asked us the question, “What is your kryptonite?” Do you remember Superman? I used to love watching that TV show back in the ’60s. He was the ultimate superhero. But the one thing that took away his power was kryptonite. If he came in contact with it, he became physically ill. My response to Mr. Elledge’s question was that I really struggle with the times when I cannot control the outcome of something or the speed at which something is done. I simply need to admit that what I really lack is patience. When this happens, it can derail me or I become overly anxious – the very opposite of experiencing God’s peace.
So how does God teach us patience? By putting us into situations where we need to simply trust Him for the outcome. There are numerous verses in the Bible that tell us to “wait on the Lord.” Yes – it really means to WAIT! I was searching online about this topic and came across Bibleknowledge.com. There it said, “The fast pace of our world today has so many of us mentally wired, that we end up getting too angry and impatient when things do not go as fast as we think they should. That is why when God tries to work the quality of patience into us by making us wait for certain things, it can be a bit painful and stressful at times, as we are not used to doing it in the type of fast-paced world we live in today. But God will not let this work, the things in it, or the way it wants to run itself mess with His divine plans for our lives and how He will want to run our lives. God’s ways and timings are absolutely perfect – and no man and no fallen world are going to tell Him how to sovereignly run things, both with our world and our own individual lives.”
Kind of slaps you right in the face, doesn’t it? So I am learning to wait on God for His timing. I am learning to rest in Him when things are outside of my control. This is probably something I will continue to learn throughout my entire life. “Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He will strengthen your heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.” Psalm 27:14. You might want to ask yourself, “what is my ‘kryptonite’?”
Have a wonderful three-day weekend with your families!
Because of His Faithfulness,
Sharon C. Brobst, Ed.D.
Director