Waiting on God

Focus: Full restoration is worth the wait 

Matthew 5:6-9 (NIV) Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

I have a beautiful pin that was given to me by someone very special. Originally, the pin had a little row of accent rhinestones on it that were glued to the surface. After a few years of wear and tear, the rhinestones fell off. At first, I thought, “Oh no, now I won’t be able to wear that pin anymore”. But, on closer inspection, I discovered I could scrape the unattractive glue residue off with my thumbnail. Even though it wasn’t quite as pretty anymore, the pin was still usable and I could keep wearing it. The stones that fell off had been on the surface and you really couldn’t tell they had ever been there, once the glue was gone.

Recently, I wore the pin. Someone remarked how interesting it was and I commented that it used to be even more interesting. I pointed out the small blank space where there used to be a little row of glittering rhinestones. The person (who knows that one of my hobbies is making jewelry) said, “Well, couldn’t you just get some more rhinestones and glue them on?”

I supposed I had nothing to lose, so last night I went out to a craft store and found a clearance item that had some small strands of rhinestones just like the ones that had been on my pin. I asked a sales consultant to recommend a really good glue that would bond metal to metal. I found just what I needed and went home with my supplies.

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Today on my lunch hour, I snipped off a small strip of rhinestones that would fill the little blank spot. I carefully applied the glue to the pin and put the stones in place. Right away, I felt a surge of excitement. My pin was going to be restored to its original beauty! I picked up the pin and saw the stones start to slide out of place. Oops! I was rushing things. As an afterthought, I looked at the directions on the tube and sure enough, it said the glue would take 48-72 hours to fully set. That seems like a long time! But, I want the results to last and I’m sure it will be worth the wait. If I hadn’t learned about the waiting period, I might have been tempted to wear the pin tomorrow and the stones could have possibly fallen off and been lost. I would have had to start the project all over again because I hadn’t been patient.

Something of mine was broken, I found the courage to try to fix it, and the wisdom to accept the fact that it is going to take some time for a ‘full cure’.

The story of my pin is a lot like the process of recovery.

Many people who are depressed and addicted can still function. Their true condition may not be that obvious on the outside…but, life just isn’t as pretty as it used to be.

If you are struggling today, there is hope. No matter how bad things have become, there is still the possibility of restoration if you will have courage and give God time.

In comparing your life to the description in Matthew 5:5-9, the process of getting to the point where you have a hunger and thirst for righteousness and are filled—being able to show and be shown mercy—being pure in heart and seeing God—and being known as a peacemaking child of God, may be things you will have to wait a while for—but they are beautiful attributes that will apply to you, in time. Your life has been broken, but it can be fixed.

Declaration: I have the courage to cooperate with God as He performs this transformation that is taking place in my life. The end result will be worth the wait, and I will receive new strength each day.