A certain amount of our life is spent waiting and growing impatient in our waiting. But with God, His timing is not our timing. He always shows up at the right time, not too early, not too late. Abraham waited many weary years for a son. Only eternity will explain why God seemed to tarry, The Israelites waited in different circumstances for God to release them from the tyrannical hand of Pharaoh. Elijah waited, Gideon waited. Even Mary the mother of Jesus waited. The nine pregnant months must have seemed like an eternity as she waited for God’s Son to be born. The disciples of Jesus had to wait, to wait for Him to appear or act. Why didn’t Jesus heal Lazarus immediately? Why did the family have to suffer so long if he was going to be healed anyway? They had so many hours of mental torment. We read that on one occasion the disciples waited so long they went back to fishing. (John 6:15-21. Their wait was eventually rewarded when Jesus came towards them walking on the water!
We too are in a time of waiting, waiting to go to heaven either by our death or Jesus’ second coming. When we look at the state of the world or we are experiencing great difficulties, we cry out with the seers of old ‘How long? O Lord.?’ But the God who is out of our limitation of time, has complete control over time.