My mother recently bought a Keurig.
And while, yes, part of me wants to be a coffee snob and have opinions like “French presses are the only way to make coffee,” I am not. I like my coffee a little stronger than my mom, but I’m not much of a coffee snob. If it’s coffee, I’ll drink it.
The best thing about the Keurig though is that it’s so quick.
One of the characteristics about our culture is when we want it, we want it now. We have almost forgotten what it’s like to wait.
And I don’t mean the store is out of its iPhone 5s stock so you have to wait a couple weeks. I mean really wait for something. I know. There have been so many comparisons between the current generation and its inability to wait. Let’s be real, though. I love the fact I just microwaved some popcorn. Instant is great. But it hasn’t taught me how to wait.
We can wait passively, waiting for something to happen to us. It doesn’t involve us putting forth any effort. We probably tend to give up more quickly if we aren’t doing anything. On the other hand, we can wait expectantly. We can hustle while we wait. We can work while we wait. We wait knowing something will happen, and we wake up every morning expecting something to happen.
Psalm 27:13-14 in The Message says:
I’m sure now I’ll see God’s goodness
in the exuberant earth.
Stay with God!
Take heart. Don’t quit.
I’ll say it again:
Stay with God.
God did not instantly deliver the promised land to the Israelites. While you’re waiting on God, you’ll find he won’t instantly answer your prayers. God is not a gumball machine.
While we are waiting, we can learn to develop a more intimate prayer life. I went to college in a suburb of Kansas City, so I spent a lot of time in my car driving home during breaks. That’s a lot of time alone. Usually I would listen to a lot of NPR, but it was also great time to slow my mind down, play some worship music and pray.
I believe God uses the time spent waiting to prepare us for what is next. God is preparing you for a successful transition into His plan when you’re ready.
Andra Kee 