When Opportunities Wear Disguises
Who doesn’t jump at a great opportunity? Friends invite us to a concert. A job opens that fits our skills and seems to be an answer to prayer. The house we’ve admired comes on the market. We respond and shout “Yes!”.
Those events are common opportunities that put a smile on our face, but what about those we don’t recognize? I think some opportunities wear disguises and don’t appear as opportunities at all. We resist them.
Such was the case in Exodus 32:1 (NIV) “When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, ‘Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.’”
The Israelites were presented with an opportunity to wait but failed the test. The rest of the passage details their plan. Take off their gold, make an altar, make a calf. Eat, drink and play. In other words, instead of waiting to hear from Moses who was meeting with God, they took things into their hands and the results were disastrous. (Exodus 32)
We all wait…
I don’t know about you, but, like the Israelites, I don’t especially enjoy waiting. I rarely see waiting as an opportunity.
- I don’t like flipping through magazines in a doctor’s waiting room, while he is running late for appointments.
- I don’t like waiting on answers to prayer when it seems so obvious for God to act now.
- I don’t like waiting for medical test results.
- I don’t like waiting for rain to stop while I’m trapped in a store.
- I don’t like waiting for a conflict to be resolved.
- I don’t like waiting for responses from editors to writing submissions.
But, maybe in “waiting room waiting”…
- I’d learn something through reading an article, or engaging in conversation with another patient and encourage her and I could redeem the time.
- I’d learn to trust God in difficult situations that drag out.
- I’d develop patience.
- I’d learn to see and remember God’s promises and character in reading His Word.
- I’d examine my character, behavior, and weaknesses.
- I’d continue to work in the wait and persevere.
- I’d allow the fruit of the Spirit to flow in my life in challenges, so I nourish others.
Look for the disguise…
We are often tempted to take things into our hands and run ahead of God; to sigh in exasperation as the clock ticks and the calendar dates move; to do —maybe manipulate—instead of praying; to embrace our perspective and overlook or minimize God’s.
The Israelites took to impatience, fed their feelings, and compensated with distractions. While they were planning, discussing, and eventually worshipping an idol, God was behind the scenes working. They missed the blessing in waiting.
We may be tempted to do the same. But if we look at the golden calf, the results were disastrous. God is at work in delays, when we don’t see an immediate answer, progress, or results.
So, my prayer for myself, is to take off the disguise of waiting and see it as an opportunity to learn, and look at the benefits associated with it. It’s a process and a discipline, and isn’t easy.
What about you?
Have you seen disguises? What don’t you like waiting for? Is waiting your opportunity? How? Share with us what you have learned.
The Conversation
Well said Ms. Marilyn. We’ve become such a culture of “instant gratification” that we seldom wait for anything anymore. Remember how much fun was spent on a Sunday afternoon porch making ice cream using rock salt and a hand-cranked freezer? Even after the ice cream was made we still had to wait another hour for it to “set.” We talked, laughed, the kids played yard games. I wonder what that would look like today (am picturing noses in iPhones)? There’s always opportunity in every circumstance; we just have to look for it. Great post!
JD, You always add value to my blog with illustrations I can see and in this case, taste. Ice cream! My background involved simmering spaghetti sauce on the stove for hours. The aroma was mouthwatering. In spring and summer, with open windows, the whole neighborhood smelled the same on Sunday. It was an exercise in waiting for the sauce to be “just right” and waiting for a delicious meal. The meals were not hurry up and get done, but lasted a while with conversation–so different from today. We didn’t mind waiting for dessert, either. Thanks for taking the time to comment. Marilyn
So true, Marilyn. We can’t stand to wait for anything. Like Saul when he waited for Samuel and when Samuel didn’t show up when Saul thought he should, Saul disobeyed and lost the kingdom. God knows what He is doing and we need to see things from His perspective. Thanks for the post.
Yes, Barbara, we read many illustrations in the Bible where failure to wait led to some catastophies! It’s a grace to us that those are recorded for us to learn. Glad to hear from you, Marilyn
One of the hardest times for me to wait is in a traffic jam. But oftentimes this means an accident is ahead. I’ve learned to pray for those involved. Enjoyed your post, Marilyn.
Agree on that! I try to use those times and expand them as you say–praying for others and then thinking, “waiting has a purpose”. Where else do I need to learn to wait. Thanks for commenting. Marilyn
Waiting is so difficult as times! I smiled when reading this blog and nodded my head as you turned each waiting situation into an opportunity. I needed this!
Thanks for your comment. I’m glad it met a need for you. Marilyn
I don’t like waiting in line to pay for my groceries, Marilyn. By the time I finish shopping, I’m exhausted anyway, and then I take that frustration to the check-out line. Thank you for the reminder to find ways to still that irritability by praying for the cashier, visiting with the person in line ahead or behind me, or planning the evening meal to save time when I get home. There’s many productive ways I can spend that waiting time and you’ve challenged me to do just that!
Thanks Beckie. Glad the post was personally meaningful to you. We are all a work in progress when it comes to waiting. I appreciate your part in our conversation. Marilyn
Well said, Marilyn. I wonder how differently the children of Israel’s journey might have been if they’d waited in faith for Moses instead of taking matters into their own (sinful) hands. Now that might be a post for another day . . . Thanks for the reminder today to wait patiently and trust God.
Thank you Lori. I wonder the same. I also use hindsight to think about my choices and the direction I took or could have taken. So thankful God doesn’t waste these mistakes-poor choices, but seeks to redeem them if we seek Him for wisdom and trust.