The waiting room, by Nicki Copeland


My family was recently picked up by Test and Trace as having been in contact with COVID-19, so we had to self-isolate for two weeks. Being at home and unable to go out didn’t feel particularly strange – I guess we’d got used to it after so many months. What did feel strange, though, was waiting to see whether any of us would come down with the virus.

Waiting. It’s not always an easy thing to do, is it? Yet life calls us to wait for so many things – big things, little things, and mid-sized things. We wait for public transport, or wait in the doctor’s or hospital waiting room for our appointment. We wait for test or exam results. We wait for special days – weddings, birthdays, anniversaries.

Sometimes we wait in joyful anticipation – such as for a wedding or other celebration. At other times we wait in fear or anxiety – did I pass or fail the exam? What will the result of the blood test be? How did I do in the interview; did I get the job?

Waiting is part of the writer’s life, too. Waiting for inspiration. Waiting for time in our diary when we can put pen to paper, in the midst of the busyness of so many other commitments. Waiting for our beta readers to feed back. Waiting to hear back from publishers or other publications to whom we’ve submitted our manuscript or article.

The question I want to ask this morning, is what do we do in the waiting? How do we use the time? Do we hand it over to God and wait patiently for the answer, or do we pace up and down the waiting room, willing the time to pass?

I have to confess, I’m not always a patient waiter. I can sometimes be a bit like Abraham and Sarah, wanting to take matters into my own hands and make things happen more quickly.

But there are lessons to be learned in the waiting. Many biblical characters waited a long time before they realised their ultimate calling. Abraham and Sarah waiting nearly 25 years for Isaac. Moses waited 40 years in the desert. Joseph waited 13 years in slavery and in prison. And God used that time to hone their characters, to teach them valuable lessons and skills they would need, and – most importantly – to teach them to trust Him.

I guess we’re all waiting for something at the moment – the end of the pandemic and for life to go back to ‘normal’, as well as all sorts of other things. How are we using the waiting time? Are we stamping our feet in impatience, or are we asking God what He might want us to teach us?



Nicki Copeland is a freelance writer, speaker, copy editor and proofreader – and loves anything to do with words. She is the author of Losing the Fig Leaf and Less than Ordinary? She is also responsible for the day-to-day running of Instant Apostle publishers. When she has the luxury of some free time, she can invariably be found with a book in one hand and some chocolate in the other.

 


Comments

  1. I really struggle with waiting, but those Biblical examples have reminded me to be patient. Thank you Nicki.

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  2. I'm not too bad at waiting as I have a kind of que sera sera mentality. I wish I could call it faith but, no, I think it is actually que sera sera and completely unBiblical. This is a great post, though - it made me rethink how much of life is about waiting. I love having to wait at the doctors or the dentist if it means I can get a crossword book out and spend time doing nothing useful in a sanctioned way!

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    1. Ah yes, the weird joy of taking a book to an appointment where you know you'll be waiting a long time - and you almost feel disappointed if you're called on time!

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  3. A very apposite post for me this morning Nicki, for all sorts of reasons. Thank you! Some great reminders and insights here,

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  4. Thanks for your usual pearls of wisdom, Nicki. My natural tendency is to try to take matters into my own hands, but I am learning greater patience!

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  5. I'm okay with waiting usually, it's delays that I struggle with!

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