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Note: This post is part of the Two Weeks of Waiting Devotional. To return to the table of contents for the devotional, click here. To read this as a downloadable ebook, subscribe below.
In this current season of waiting I’m in, when I hear friends talk about the importance of “timing pregnancy to maximize time off work” or suggest I “just relax,” I have to confess that sometimes I “accidentally” give them a little piece of my mind.
When I hear people complain about how difficult pregnancy or motherhood is, I have to confess that sometimes I forget to remind myself not to judge those who don’t seem to be as grateful as I think I would be.
And if I hear one more pregnancy announcement from one more person who wasn’t even trying…well, I have to confess that feelings of bitterness might just overshadow my excitement.
But who could blame me, right? This is normal, right? After I’ve been waiting for so long, I have the right to snap at people a little bit…judge a little bit…be just a little bit bitter…right?
When you’ve been waiting for so long, you start to think your rough life gives you an excuse to…well, sin. After all you’ve been through, envy, judgment, and bitterness are all permissible, right?
Subconsciously, I’m afraid that we’ve been led to believe that times of waiting or suffering give us permission to sin.
The Israelites waiting and wandering around in the desert were no different:
“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.'”
Exodus 32:1, NIV
In other words, this is taking too long. Who could blame us for finding a new god for ourselves? So Aaron took their gold jewelry and made them an idol in the shape of a calf, “fashioning it with a tool.” When Moses finally comes down from the mountain, Aaron’s response is laughable: “Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!” (Exodus 32:24)
When the season of waiting lasted too long, the Israelites figured they deserved another god. They figured that times of suffering gave them the right to disobey God.
But the truth is this: God calls us to obey Him, no matter what season we’re in.
Further study + reflection
In your season of waiting, you’re probably not crafting a golden calf idol out of your old jewelry. But what are you allowing yourself to do? What have you convinced yourself is “okay” because anyone in your position would do the same? Recognize that bitter, envious, or judgmental thoughts or actions are sinful, and ask God for forgiveness. It may not be easy to obey God during times of suffering, which is why He promises to help us and forgive us when we fail.
Note: This post is part of the Two Weeks of Waiting Devotional. To return to the table of contents for the devotional, click here. To read this as a downloadable ebook, subscribe below.
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