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essential, most beautiful, and mostlasting things in our life are thingsbeyond our control and power. And sowe have to wait.I have reflected on the dynamics ofwaiting in my own life during the pasttwo years, particularly when my wifewas diagnosed with terminal cancer. Ihave waited a lot in hospitals beforetreatments began and after theyended. We had to wait for the resultsto come in and for new appointmentswith the doctors. And where did wewait? In the waiting room, as the placeis conveniently called.I don’t know about you, but I hateto wait. I don’t like long lines or trafficjams or delayed appointments. I don’tlike tardy people or processes that prolong.I want to get things done fast andefficiently. I want to move forward.And normally I know how best to goabout it quickly and easily. I know whatI need to accomplish, and I know howto get it done. Often waiting appears asa meaningless delay of something that Iwant to reach much faster. But as longas we are not in heaven, God calls us towait. There is no human life withoutwaiting. Waiting is part of our humanexistence. It characterizes us as beings,which exist in time. Waiting is part ofour story, our history. There is no historicalsuccession without waiting.There is no life without waiting. Theperson who lives—waits! The personwho waits—lives!Waiting Upon GodEven the biblical writers knew aboutthis experience. The prophets oftenexpressed waiting with the question:“How long, O Lord?” (see Hab. 1:2; Dan.8:13). The biblical authors employedseveral word pictures that can be understoodadequately only when waitingprovides the background to them.The Bible speaks about hope. Thewonderful Advent hope of Jesus’ sooncoming (Titus 2:13). Hope has to doWe allwaitbecauseGod’s gracehas not yetended.with waiting. The person whohopes—waits!Then there is the patience of thesaints. “Here is the perseverance of thesaints who keep the commandmentsof God and their faith in Jesus” (Rev.14:12, NASB).* Perseverance andpatience have to do with waiting. Theperson who is patient—waits!Scripture also speaks about thelonging of the believer for God. “Asthe deer pants for the water brooks, somy soul pants for You, O God” (Ps.42:1, NASB). Longing has to do withwaiting. The one who longs—waits!Consider Scripture’s take on suffering.Suffering has to do with waiting.The suffering person asks: “Howlong will it last, Lord Jesus?” The personwho suffers—waits!In the Bible, God also calls us to bealert and to be awake, so that we areready when He returns (see 1 Peter5:8; Luke 12:37). The person who isalert—waits!In the final analysis we all waitbecause God’s grace has not yet ended!Even God, in His great mercy andpatience, waits. He waits for us. Hewaits for you, and He waits for me.God does not want to lose anybodywho could be saved. And so He waitsto extend His grace and mercy.Waiting TransformsWaiting is difficult. Waiting withouthope and without meaning isalmost unbearable. Only a person whohas a worthy and meaningful goal inview can be patient and perseverantwhile waiting for it. The temptation intimes of waiting is to focus on thethings we wait for. We tend to focuson the obstacles that need to beremoved, or the good things that willbring change. But remember: waitingisn’t just about what you are hopingfor in the future. From a biblical perspectivewaiting is also about what Iwill become as I wait! Waiting alwayspresents me with a spiritual choice:Will I allow myself to question God’sgoodness in what I experience, or willI embrace the opportunity of exercisingliving hope in times of waiting?Living hope is a hope that is alivebecause it is grounded in God’s faithfulnessand trusts His never-failingpromises. If God has allowed me tolive, He is using my waiting as anopportunity to change me into somebodyI would never be if I didn’t haveto wait. Rather than being a meaninglessdrag and a hindrance, I am learningto see that waiting actually is fundamentallyabout what I will becomeas I wait. In this sense waiting is anexpression of God’s goodness. It isrestorative because it is one of God’sunique tools to develop my characterso that I can become the person Hewants me to be. n*Scripture quotations marked NASB are from the New AmericanStandard Bible, copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971,1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.Used by permission.Frank M. Hasel is adean and professor of theTheological Seminaryat Seminar SchlossBogenhofen, Austria.October 2011 | Adventist World 13