Expectant Waiting

Waiting forces us to be radically dependent on God’s will and timing.

By: Brendon O’Dowd, head of school

“Do you not know? Do you not hear? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to dwell in; who brings princes to nothing, and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness. Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown, scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth, when he blows on them, and they wither, and the tempest carries them off like stubble. To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him? says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name; by the greatness of his might and because he is strong in power, not one is missing. Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, ‘My way is hidden from the LORD, and my right is disregarded by my God’? Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”
(Isaiah 40:21-31)

I hate to wait. I try to find the shortest line at the grocery store and the gas station (which rarely works for me). I am in a hurry (and “don’t know why” to quote an old Alabama song). Why am I (are we) in such a hurry? Our fast-paced world screams at us that we are behind the times and late to the party. And social media only exacerbates those feelings. Waiting seems like torture in a world of instant answers.

Our verses for this school year come from Isaiah 40:21-31 and remind us that expectant waiting is not torture but an avenue of strength. Waiting allows us to see God at work in and around us. Waiting forces us to be radically dependent on God’s will and timing. Isaiah finishes this chapter by making a startling claim … we can run and not grow weary. But this is only possible if we wait for the Lord’s help.

Parenting requires waiting, and that is hard. But you are not alone. God’s presence is guaranteed, and as a community, we want to grow in our ability to be a place where we support, encourage, and help you not grow weary waiting on the Lord.

Thank you for partnering with us as we help disciple your children to think biblically and live redemptively, even in the area of learning to wait.