Stand Still, Wait, and See
Do you want to know what one of my least favorite words is? Wait. I cannot stand this word. In my book, its like a curse word because this word requires me to do one thing I am TERRIBLE at...waiting. And with waiting comes patience. And with patience comes trust. And the list goes on and one. Have you ever had to wait for something? My guess would be yes. There are times where I feel like I'm waiting for this "Big Moment", this defining factor where my life will completely change for the better.
Author Shauna Niequist writes, "
"Today is your big moment. Moments, really. The life you've been waiting for is happening all around you. The scene unfolding right outside your window is worth more than the most beautiful painting, and the crackers and peanut butter that you're having for lunch are as profound, in their own way, as the Last Supper. This is it. This is life in all is glory, swirling and unfolding all around us, disguised as normal, everyday non-events. But pull off the mask and you will find your life, waiting to be made, chosen, woven, crafted. Your life, right now, today, is exploding with energy and power and detail and dimension, better than the best movie you have ever seen. You and your family and your friends and your house and your dinner table and your garage have all the makings of a life of epic proportions, a story for the ages. Because they all are. Every life is. You have stories worth telling, memories worth remembering, dreams worth working toward, a body worth feeling, a soul worth tending, and beyond that, the God of the universe dwells within you, the true culmination of super and natural. You are more than dust and bones. You are spirit and power and image of God. And you have been given Today."
In the past I have done my best to live everywhere but the present. The present was filled with regrets and hurts and problems that I couldn't seem to solve and when I was still, I felt those things.
"Stand still and see the salvation of God. The Lord will make a way for you, you need only to be still." Exodus 14:13
Moses is saying, "See what I have done, the evidence that He is God. See a work accomplished with none but God could effect." We busy ourselves and fill our lives with so much doing and working that we forget to stand still, be present, and soak up the salvation of God contained in this moment.
I caught myself doing this one time. I was running around my house trying to get all of my laundry started before one of my favorite shows started. As I am walking past the sunroom, the sunset out back catches my eye. After a glance I began to walk away, but God caught my attention again and whispered to me, "I made this for you to enjoy. I created this for you. Why are you running around trying to be on time for a television show, when I have a beautiful picture right in front of you, that I made? One that will never be replicated in the same way." Stand still and see the salvation of God.
Our everyday lives, the eating sleeping, breathing, going to work, going to school, the hurts, the regrets, the meaningless everyday, is something unique and beautiful created by the King of the Universe. Until we begin to believe this, we will essentially always be waiting. We will always be looking ahead to the future, wishing and dreaming of something better instead of embracing the life we have been given. Stand still, wait, and see the salvation of God.