By Rev. J. Loren Russell
Isaiah 40:28-31 NKJV
“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary.
His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”
“The waiting place…, for people just waiting. Waiting for a train to go or a bus to come or a plane to go or the mail to come, or the rain to go, the phone to ring, or the snow to snow, or waiting around for a Yes or No, or waiting for their hair to grow. Everyone is just waiting.” Theodor Seuss “Ted” Geise, better known as Dr. Seuss, penned these unforgettable words in his children book, “Oh, The Places You’ll Go! I think it is an appropriate lead in for today’s article. We all have places to go, people to see and things to do, but many times we are in that waiting place, waiting for the right time to come or the right time to go.
Most of us realize that jumping head-long into things without thinking or consideration, could be considered impetuous, impulsive, maybe even reckless. Some things need to be thought through. That is why there is a waiting place. It is in the waiting place that we find time for contemplation, meditation, rumination, and reflection. Sometimes, life can present us with such challenges that we feel like staking a claim and staying right there in that waiting place. We can forget that the waiting place is just a stop along the path to our ultimate destination. Even the Bible acknowledges that there is an appropriate time for waiting…, when we are waiting on the Lord.
The Prophet Isaiah suggests that while we are trying to figure it out, the Lord has already worked it out. While we are waiting for the Lord, He is working on our behalf. While we are waiting, He is not slumbering, not sleeping. He is working behind the scenes giving us power in our weakness, increasing our strength when we are feeble, fitting us with wings to fly, putting endurance in our running and stamina in our walking. If you did not know or had not heard, while we are waiting on the Lord, He uses our waiting place to renew our strength and to prepare us for the flight that will take us to our ultimate destiny, that place He has prepared for us.
Dr. Seuss closes his book with these words, “So… be your name Buxbaum or Bixby, or Bray or Mordicai, Ali, Van, Allen O’Shea, you’re off to Great Places! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. Go…get on your way.”
Rev. J. Loren Russell
What are you waiting for? Have you been waiting on the Lord? Then your waiting is not in vain. You will soon be on your way.
Be Blessed!
Rev. J. Loren Russell is President/CEO of The JLR Company for Church Financial Strategy & Consulting; an associate minister at both Goodwill and The Greater Universal Baptist Churches in the Bronx; and creator & host of “Matters of Faith – The Radio Show” Mondays 8:00 – 10:00 PM. Listen on Matters of Faith on Facebook LIVE.
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