Waiting and Waiting and Waiting
It doesn’t really matter how old or young we are, waiting is often a very hard thing to do. Yet, life is full of waiting. As a Christian our life is full of waiting and trusting. Psalms 27:14 – Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.
Noah did a lot of waiting This verse certainly applied to him:
Psalms 37:34 – Wait on the LORD, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it
- Noah preached and waited for the flood to come
- He waited for others to respond to the Truth
- Once inside the ark, he waited seven more days for the rain to start
- He waited for the rain to stop
- He waited for the ark to come to a resting point
- He waited three more months before he could see the tops of the mountains
- He waited for the waters to recede
- He waited for the raven to go back and forth until the waters were dried up
- He waited for the dove to find dry land
- When the dove returned he waited seven more days before sending it out again to return with an olive leaf.
- After the dove returned again, he waited seven more days to send the dove out once again
- Noah waited until God told him to leave the ark. He was on the ark for a whole year!
That’s a lot of waiting!
During all that time, Noah and his family surely had their doubts. Perhaps, they thought that God had forgotten them. After all, they were human too. How wonderful it must have been just to open the window and let some light come in. Yes, LIGHT! So refreshing this must have been. Jesus is the Light of the World and how refreshing it is when we realize that He can shine in our hearts as our Savior! Noah saw the dry land and yet God made him wait a little longer before leaving the ark. God’s way is the best way, the only way, and always for our own benefit.
Perhaps Noah, being somewhat weary of his restraint, would have quitted the ark at first; but God, in kindness to him, ordered him to stay so much longer. Note, God consults our benefit rather than our desires; for he knows what is good for us better than we do for ourselves, and how long it is fit our restraints should continue and desired mercies should be delayed. We would go out of the ark before the ground is dried: and perhaps, if the door be shut, are ready to remove the covering, and to climb up some other way; but we should be satisfied that God’s time of showing mercy is certainly the best time, when the mercy is ripe for us and we are ready for it. -M. Henry
What a weird feeling it must have been to step out onto dry land and realize that you were the only people on the earth. When we are willing to follow Christ and wait for His timing, we will see His mercy. God, in His mercy, had granted Noah and his family a new beginning. He had saved them from His wrath and made everything new. When we trust Christ as Savior, we too are saved from His wrath, old things are passed away and all things are become new!
God does not forget His promises. In wrath He remembers mercy. When we wait on Him He does what is best for us in His time. Oh how He loves!
WAITING On GOD – Kindle Book
