May 12, 2008

Room To Wait

This is a waiting room. In fact it's the very waiting room that I waited in today. This picture only shows about two-thirds of the people in that waiting area. There were several more to our right and behind us.

I hate waiting rooms. I hate waiting. It seems nothing ever productive happens in a waiting room. (Unless you consider reading out of date magazines a productive use of your time.)

Not to mention how maddening the lack of control can be in a waiting room. Someone else owns your time in that waiting room. And it's completely up to them on whether or not they ever come and meet you in that room. Generally you stare at a closed door. Just hoping that soon someone will open the door, and bring you out of the seemingly endless waiting.

The waiting room I was in today was not my wait. In fact it wasn't really the wait of anyone you see in the picture. We were all waiting on behalf of someone else. We were the friends and family of the Kelsey family, and we were waiting to celebrate their newest addition to their family. We were waiting on the adoption of their beautiful baby girl.

But that adoption didn't happen today. That celebration didn't happen. The wait has been extended by a couple more weeks. And fear came in the form of a long distance phone call from the birth father.

Tears were shed.
Hearts were broken.

And God himself was right there in the midst, grieving with us, grieving for us.

However, what this picture can't convey is what is happening behind the scenes. Not in the court room, not on the phone line, but in the heart and mind. Because God's brilliance shines brightest in our dark.

He gives power to the weak,
And to those who have no might He increases strength.
Even the youths shall faint and be weary,
And the young men shall utterly fall,
But those who wait on the LORD
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.
-Isaiah 40:29-31

And if you happen to find yourself in your own 'waiting room', here's something to read other than the typical out of date magazine.