The Waiting Room

In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old. (Luke 1:5-7)

One of the hardest places to be in life is in the waiting room. Not knowing what the doctor will say, not knowing whether or not the tumor is malignant, not knowing if the operation is successful.

Of course, there are other waiting rooms too. These are the places you sit wondering whether you will get that job, or whether you will ever meet someone you can spend the rest of your life with, or whether the check will arrive so you can pay the rent. If you’ve ever felt the pinch of any of these waiting rooms, you know what Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth went through.

Elizabeth and Zechariah had been praying for a long time for a child. We are told repeatedly that they were well advanced in years and very old. They were somewhere in their 90s. If they married in their mid-to-early teens as most couples did in that day, they had been praying somewhere in the vicinity of 60 to 70 years and still no child.

Little did they know that in God’s own way and in His own timing, He would give them a child, a very special child, one that would prepare the world for the coming of the Messiah. For the child that Zechariah and Elizabeth later had was John the Baptist.

If you’re waiting on something right now, if you’re waiting for God to come through for you, don’t give up. Don’t lose hope. And don’t buy the lie that it’s too late for God to act. His plan surpassed all logic and practicality when He gave Zechariah and Elizabeth a son in their late 90s, because with Him, all things are possible. That truth applies to your situation as well. So if you find yourself currently in the waiting room, don’t walk out on God. What He has in store for you is always worth the wait.

Dear Lord, thank you for beautiful example through of Zechariah and Elizabeth’s patience in waiting on you. I ask that you would give me that same patience in my own waiting room. Help me to trust your methods and your timing, and to stay hopeful that you will keep your promises to me. Amen.