Character Confession: Waiting for that Light at the End of the Tunnel
Original post July 2012
Is it just me? I don’t think so, because when I asked on Facebook about waiting, a few people chimed in.
Here’s my deal–I do pretty well with long waits. I’ve waited years for children, for job circumstances, to overcome fears. I’ve waited months for vacations, sales, weight loss, and television shows to return. No matter what the wait is, when the wait is almost over I fall apart.
Every time.
Big, life-changing wait like having children, and small issues like The Closer returning to TNT. In both cases, when it is thisclose to happening, I whine, complain, try to quit, walk away, cry, and repeat.
Every time.
Case in point: when my husband and I were first engaged, he lived a couple hours away. He hated the distance, but I held up pretty well until the countdown was on for him to move to my hometown. We were two weeks away from the big move and I couldn’t take it. The time frame seemed suddenly impossible to handle, so I decided to walk away. I sent him an e-mail and broke up.
He never got the message.
And when I told him, he reminded me how close we were to being in the same city. I needed to be patient. Trust God.
Now here I am less than a week from getting my cast off. I made it through three separate casts. Teaching VBS. Driving. Sleeping. Getting dressed. Stabbing myself in the eye by putting contacts in left handed. None of that really got to me. Until this week.
Because I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
The one song that helps me is the Southern Gospel song Four Days Late. It’s about Mary and Martha’s reactions to Jesus regarding the death of their brother, Lazarus. Had Jesus come immediately, without them needing to wait, they would never know a miracle. Lazarus was resurrected, and I’m pretty sure Mary and Martha would agree Jesus taking so long was worth the wait.
I guess some of us need to fall apart before the end to appreciate the light at the end of that tunnel.
So, share. Is it just me, or do you struggle with this too?
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Hmm… that’s interesting. I can see why you feel that. I am probably the opposite, though. I feel like giving up when the wait seems too long. Once I’m near the end, I gain confidence. It’s kind of like a long drive. I can’t stand them. Once I near the end, though, I feel like I’m already there! I might freak out a little, like wondering if *I* am worth the wait. Does that make sense?
That does make sense. I think way more sense than how I react! I appreciate you sharing, Tereasa.