I know patience is a virtue. Itâs just not my virtue.
When things arenât happening the way I think they should, or theyâre not happening when I think they should, the odds are good that I will doâŚsomething.
The thing is, sometimes waiting is exactly what God is calling us to do.
We all know the line about how God always answers prayers, but sometimes the answer is âno.â Thatâs right, as far as it goes. But thereâs another answer.
Sometimes the answer is ânot yet.â Thatâs the one that I struggle with.
I do better with a flat âno.â At least I know where I stand.Â
When it comes to ânot yet,â my first instinct is - I want to know when. I want to know how. I need details.
God almost always has other ideas.
Because ânot yetâ isnât a pointless hurry up and wait. Or the sign of a disorganized deity who needs to get His stuff together.
Whatever other reason there may be for the delay, Godâs ânot yetâ is a practical antidote to the pride that a lack of patience smuggles into our lives. The vanity that gives itself away when I insist on knowing when and how, when I demand details from God.
Itâs why Jesus says in todayâs Gospel, âno slave is greater than his master nor any messenger greater than the one who sent him.â
Which means that if Godâs giving us a ânot yet,â weâve got a choice. We can go with that first instinct. Demand details from God. Maybe even do it ourselves (and end up with all kinds of things we never wanted).
And give away the truth. That whoever you and I think weâre trusting, weâre really relying on some of the least dependable people we know. Us.
After all, how many times have you and I been wrong before?
Or we can trust God. Even when the answer is ânot yet.â
Resting in the knowledge that whatever we think âhas to happen,â the God who has always loved us has something better in store for us than we could ever ask or imagine.