Hope When You're in the Waiting Place

Hi Friends,

As I think about the story of Sarah, Abraham's wife, and wonder of waiting, I realize that this week has been a waiting week for me too.  A hard week.  And a little bit scary.  Joelle's new horse developed a lump on her chest that seemed like it could be pigeon fever. So we watched, we waiting (and I worried!). It grew huge. I called the vet, I waited (and I worried).  And I thought about what a hard thing it is to wait, and not know, and try not to worry. (Turns out the lump was just a big, huge blister which the vet lanced and now we'll doctor it and drain it for a week and … WAIT for it to hopefully get well.)

So, as I think about the waiting, I wanted to share with you a small excerpt from Wrestling with Wonder where I talked a bit about the wonder of waiting.  Also, just a heads-up, Zondervan (my publisher) was able to secure a BookBub advertising spot for my book which will make the ebook version only $0.99 for one day next week (on March 10, Tuesday) on Amazon/Kindle, B&N/Nook, Kobo, iBooks, etc.  So, if you haven't gotten your e-copy yet, mark your calendar and spread the word!  And if you did get the e-version for the regular $7.99 price, THANK YOU - those sales will make a very big difference when I propose my next book on Sarah.

Meanwhile, here are some encouraging words on Waiting from Wrestling with Wonder, Chapter 9...


Excerpt from Wrestling with Wonder:

What does wonder look like in the land of waiting? What if you go months, years, decades, believing in God’s power and promises, but not seeing that power revealed in your circumstances? Mary has been there, in the waiting place. She believed the angel’s words in Luke 1, she sang of what God would do in her Magnificat, but now decades have passed. Jesus has not stepped forward in power, has not revealed his majesty, has not conquered Rome. Then, tucked away at a wedding in Galilee, she hears those words again: “My hour has not yet come.”

            Yet, a transformation is about to take place. Not only of water into wine, but of Mary herself. From mother to follower. From parent to disciple.

            So, as we wrestle with a God who asks us to wait, God is beckoning us to come to a wedding at Cana. As we struggle to understand a God who sometimes does not come through with the power we are looking for in the timeline we want, he is inviting us to come alongside Mary. As we question a God who sees the need and still says “not yet,” he calls us to watch Mary touching the sleeve of her son. To hear her words: “They have no wine.”

            Let us wait with her. Because transformation will come. Of water. Of stone jars. Of need. Of worry. Of the waiting itself. Because we too will be transformed.