Waiting

I've been thinking about "waiting" lately.  I've noticed something in me & in our Western American culture (or at least in my local social context).

People really only wait to act.  

We wait for an answer to make a choice.  We way for permission to then act.  We wait for a response to a question to then move forward in a conversation.  We wait, but are really ready to just keep moving.  People do not like to be kept waiting as the priority & importance of "the rest of the moment/day/conversation" is more important.

But as I have been attentive to my own life & my soul I have raised some questions for myself.  Do I wait with expectation or anxiety?  Do I disregard the process of waiting for my own comfort?  

Frustration tends to come with waiting for people.  We are more focussed on the "next" thing, than the process of waiting.  

Observe;

Watch people in line at Starbucks, while waiting for their coffee they are meticulously focussed on their phone trying to "kill time waiting".  

Notice what your own body does while you are on hold to a company that has that all to familiar soundtrack playing that resembles the "this will take a while" tune. 

When you send an email with a specific & important question, how often to check, re-check & the maybe I missed it check your inbox for a reply?  

You send a text message and if you haven't had a reply in 30s or less you send the "did you get that" message.

Waiting is not easy.  We allow waiting to create tension.  Waiting can create opportunities to reflect & breathe, but we seldom take those opportunities.  What if I allowed waiting to produce freedom in my life instead of frustration, could I handle situations differently?

Psalm 46:10 has a whole new perspective for my life.  When I am still, waiting, allowing myself the freedom to "wait" for an answer from the LORD I am in process of transformation of my SOUL.  And that is really the only action that is life altering