Nice Lights, Wrong Season

“Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you;
therefore he will rise up to show you compassion.
For the Lord is a God of justice.
Blessed are all who wait for him!”
Isaiah 30:18 (NIV)

Arise and shine, dear one! God is with you!

"Mom, Levi's pulling out the Christmas decorations! He's setting up the light-up candy canes and putting lights on the bush outside."

I looked out the window to our front yard, and sure enough, my older child was right. My youngest, Levi, had taken it upon himself to start decorating for Christmas, and it wasn't even October yet.

Apparently, he'd been so inspired by the neighbors' fall displays that he decided to jump ahead to his favorite holiday. I have never seen a kid more excited about Christmas lights than my Levi.

That evening, as I carried the decorations back to the garage to wait for a more appropriate time, it hit me: I am just like my son when it comes to waiting on God. I'd rather do things in my own timing than in His. Waiting is hard.

Standing there with a candy cane in my hand, I realized there was nothing wrong with the lights themselves. The only thing wrong was the timing. And isn't that so often true of us? The longings on our hearts aren't always wrong. We just want them now.

Isaiah reminds us who God is in the middle of our waiting. He longs to be gracious to us. He will rise up to show us compassion. Waiting isn't God doing nothing. It's God preparing to move. He is a God of justice, and no detail escapes His sovereignty. He is never late and never careless.

Are you in a season of waiting, dear one? Is there a longing in your heart that remains unfulfilled? God is kind, and He hasn't forgotten you. But we can't see what He sees, and the temptation to take matters into our own hands can be strong. If you've found yourself rushing ahead, take a breath and step back. God is not in a hurry, and we don't need to be either.

Now, when I see our Christmas decorations tucked away in the garage, I'm reminded that the lights won't stay boxed up forever. They're only waiting for their season… just like whatever is on your heart today.