J.C. Derrick: Waiting on God

NICK EICHER, HOST: Today is Tuesday, July 24th. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from member-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Nick Eicher.

MEGAN BASHAM, HOST: And I’m Megan Basham. WORLD Radio’s J.C. Derrick is here now with a few thoughts on family, faith, and waiting on God.

J.C. DERRICK, MANAGING EDITOR: My sons Rowan and Eli have never been shy about asking God for what they want. These days, their 2- and 4-year-old hearts are set on two things: a baby sister and lots of snow.

Excuse me—very lots of snow. They interrupt me mid-prayer if I don’t get the wording right.

This has been going on for months. Despite no evidence of either prayer being answered in the affirmative, they faithfully ask for the same thing. Every day. Even as temperatures here in Dallas hit 110 degrees last week.

Part of me cringes over these prayer requests. Who knows how many years it will take to get very lots of snow in Dallas? And what if we never have another child? Will they become disillusioned with God?

As I see their childlike faith continue unfazed, I’m finding it’s actually growing my faith. Why do we adults expect instantaneous answers to our prayers anyway? And how often do we just lose interest and move on?

In his classic book, Knowing God, JI Packer writes that God takes steps to drive us out of self-confidence to trust in Himself. There’s a classic scriptural phrase for the secret to the godly life: Wait on the Lord.

The Bible is full of examples of people who just couldn’t do it. Abraham, promised a son, loses patience and takes providence into his own hands. He got Ishmael instead of Isaac.

Moses tried to use his own self-assertion to save the Israelites. An Egyptian ended up dead. And Moses ended up banished to the back side of the desert for decades.

King Saul got tired of waiting on the prophet Samuel before a battle, so he offered an unauthorized sacrifice. “You have done a foolish thing,” Samuel said. “Your kingdom will not endure.”

You’d think we would learn from these examples. But we don’t. We pray for financial provision, and when it doesn’t happen in a couple of weeks, we go borrow the money. The right spouse doesn’t come along as soon as we want, so we marry the next available option.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths.”

Easy words to say, difficult to live out.

Unless you’re Rowan and Eli. They’re still praying for snow in the dead of summer. And more than happy to wait as long as it takes.

May God give us all that kind of faith.

For WORLD Radio, I’m J.C. Derrick.

(Photo/J.C. Derrick)

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