What Are You Waiting For?

Luke 2:22 and Luke 25-32 22 When the time came for the purification rites required by the Law of Moses, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. 25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. 27 Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, 28 Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: 29 “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace.30 For my eyes have seen your salvation, 31 which you have prepared in the sight of all nations: 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.”

Simeon was an old man by the time that magic day described in this passage had arrived. He was devout and righteous, and many years before, he had been informed that he would not die before seeing the Messiah. It was a promise from God, but it did not happen immediately. Simeon had to wait.

When we look back to the Old Testament, the first thing we are told about Sarah, the wife of Abraham, was that she had been unable to have children. Her condition had placed a heavy burden on her marriage and on her personally. But then, God promised that she and Abraham would be the ancestors to a great nation and that she would indeed bear a child. We know from reading through Genesis that God’s promise to Sarah was kept. But it did not happen immediately. Like Simeon, she had to wait.

What has God promised you? What are you waiting for?

All of us have longings, things we wish we had, things in our lives we wish were different. God encourages us to present these things to Him, to “ask and ye shall receive.” We should be bold in our asking. But we should also be patient. Because our requests are not fulfilled immediately is no reason to abandon them or to abandon God. The examples of Sarah and Simeon tell us that waiting is sometimes part of God’s plan.

So ask yourself today, “What am I waiting for?”

Prayer:

Our Father, help us to be bold in our faith and our requests to you, but give us the patience and the courage to wait. Remind us that we should live in your time, not ours. Amen.

This devotion was written by Jim Stovall.

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