Are We There Yet?预览

Are We There Yet?

Are we there yet? No. Some of our waiting seasons will end in great celebration while we are here on earth. But others will only end after we leave this life.

When we started this Plan, we found Elijah miserable from waiting for the evil king Ahab and his wife Jezebel to be defeated (1 Kings 19). And when his life on earth eventually ended, he had not yet seen any justice for that pair. “No one else so completely sold himself to do what was evil in the Lord’s sight as Ahab did under the influence of his wife Jezebel” (1 Kings 21:25, NLT). Retribution would only come much later. “I will not do what I promised during his lifetime. It will happen to his sons; I will destroy his dynasty” (1 Kings 21:29, NLT).

Even though Elijah could not see the light at the end of the waiting tunnel, he did not stop doing what God asked of him. Elijah’s last recorded assignment involved yet another evil king who chose to mock God (2 Kings 1). Nothing had changed. It was still God against Baal. King Ahaziah was just Ahab version two (2 Kings 1:16). But Elijah did not give in. “And Elijah said to the king, ‘This is what the Lord says: Why did you send messengers to Baalzebub, the god of Ekron, to ask whether you will recover? Is there no God in Israel to answer your question? Therefore, because you have done this, you will never leave the bed you are lying on; you will surely die” (2 Kings 1:16, NLT).

Evil did not disappear with the death of king Ahaziah. Neither did it back off completely when Jesus died. In fact, Jesus warned his disciples about this beforehand. “‘Don’t imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword’” (Matthew 10:34, NLT). If anything, our waiting just became more intense when Jesus was crucified. We are now not just sitting around waiting for better days, we are waiting in the midst of a massive battle.

But there is one major difference. Unlike most waiting seasons on earth, our heavenly destination is guaranteed. It will happen! There is no uncertainty. “Here on earth, you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world” (John 16:33, NLT).

What has the spiritual waiting season of your life been like so far? How has God been blessing you along the way? What are you learning about his Kingdom along the way?

Let us not get tired of waiting. Let us start playing an active role in our waiting seasons here on earth. “Oh, that we might know the Lord! Let us press on to know him. He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn or the coming of rains in early spring” (Hosea 6:3, NLT).