“Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, spouting malicious accusations. I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” Psalm 27:12-14
I left 3 vials of my blood with the doctor’s office yesterday and will have to wait until Friday to learn the results. Worried while I wait? No. The children in the attached photo go to school in Petionville and on the day of this photo, they were waiting to wash their hands before lunch. Are they worried while they wait? No. On this day, they have been smelling their lunch being prepared; they know what is coming soon to their desk. Sad to say, today these kids are not in school as gangs are ruling the streets in their neighborhoods. Today, they are waiting to return safely to school.
These kids, their parents, teachers, principals, feeding program directors, cooks and Pastors could use a little extra hope today as they have been in a waiting mode for some time. These children’s school was actively preparing them to be His missionaries and doing His important work on the front lines in Haiti. Not today. All that has changed. Now, evil people are bringing chaos to Haiti as they desire to take over the country. This school has been placed on hold and they wait for a time to restart. IF you’ve had long periods of waiting, you well know that it's tough to stay encouraged as time drags on. Discouragement is crouched at the door, in the shadows, ready to pounce on any thought or hope, so you sit wondering why God has chosen to pass you by.
It may well be a long time before God moves throughout Haiti to restore peace where there was chaos. Are you ready for this? It could be years. I have found that one of God's favorite methods of preparing us for something great is to send us into the shadows to wait. I read the following words of encouragement from a recent devotion where the British author James Stalker wrote, "Waiting is a common instrument of providential discipline for those to whom exceptional work has been appointed." I read that a few times to let that pearl of wisdom sink in.
Waiting is one of God's preferred methods of preparing special people for significant projects. The last verse from Psalm 27 gives us and these kids from Haiti our direction for this time of waiting; "Wait for the LORD; be strong and let your heart take courage; yes, wait for the LORD."
Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Amen.
May God be with you,
Jay