Time Creeps

Last time I wrote about how speedy time is and how hard it is to slow it down. Well,

that is only half the story. Time is also exasperatingly slow! Slow? Yes! Time creeps like the slow-motion mechanics of a never-in-a-hurry turtle. Think it doesn't? Think it only goes too fast and you never have enough of it to get everything done on time? Well, think again.

Remember the summer you were 6 and you were waiting for Christmas? Time creeps. How about 10 miles down the road on a 3-day car trip to Grandma's house--"Are we there yet?" Time creeps. Have you ever had a migraine? Time creeps. Remember the last hour of every spring-fever school day in high school? Time creeps. What about standing in line at your favorite ride at Disneyland? Time creeps. Let's see . . . pregnant and past your due date? Time CREEPS. Ever been in a waiting room, hawk-eyeing the door for the surgeon to bring what you pray will be good news? Time stands still.

Time also creeps when we're waiting for God's timing to coincide with our actual circumstance! It can be so utterly maddening to be not only waiting, but wondering what the holdup is. It's not like He can't intervene, it's not like He doesn't have the resources, it's not like He is stuck in traffic! But oh how the time creeps and crawls on it's unperturbed belly while we stand frantically still, stuck . . . and waiting.

Why DO You have to be so calm about everything? I have everything under control. Can't You see how dire the situation is down here? Yes, baby, I see how dire it feels. I'm sorry it's so hard for you. What are You doing? ARE You doing ANYthing? I'm training you for good purposes I have for you. I don't remember signing up for this class--can I take singing lessons instead? No. But HOW much longer do I have to wait? I'm so tired of this!! Hang in there Sweetie, I'm right here with you. ARE WE THERE YET? It won't be long!

Well, "won't be long" from God's perspective and "won't be long" from ours do not necessarily feel the same. But while we're waiting for God to make something happen or for Him to deliver us to our destination, more important than how slow the time FEELS, is our faith in our Father's compassion for us when it's hard. The temptation is always to believe the lie that God doesn't notice our predicament or care about how we feel. That ugly, insidious thought is one we must not incorporate into our thinking . If we do, there will be a horrible, hollow distance in our minds between us and God. He doesn't want that. He wants us to settle in to Him, to trust Him when He says there is something good going on, and to experience Him in close quarters while we wait.

" I am still 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 27:13-14 NIV