allow me to get on my soapbox please...

there's this newish song out that plays on the radio all the time now. it's called "while i'm waiting" by john waller. i think the intent behind the song -- to continue to strive for growth in your relationship with God no matter where you are -- but that's as far as my feelings toward this song go on the good side.

there is a false attitude in my generation of believers. "i will serve you while i'm waiting. i will worship while i'm waiting..." waiting for what exactly? yeah, you're in church; you're mildly involved, but you're always waiting for something. always looking around, trying to see some sign for where God is "calling" them in ministry or life or whatever. i mean, i'm 22 years old. i have no idea where God is taking me in life. i don't know. and that's a little scary. but it's one thing to not know and be a little scared, and another to follow this trend today of sitting around, half-serving God in church, being technically "involved", but never living to your full potential because you're busy "waiting on the Lord".

that phrase is taken so out of context. that's so not what was meant. the concept, i think, comes from psalm 27:14. but look at its context --

Do not deliver me over to the desire of my adversaries,
For false witnesses have risen against me,
And such as breathe out violence.
I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD
In the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD;
Be strong and let your heart take courage;
Yes, wait for the LORD.
--psalm 27:12-14

in other words, david is saying he's been at points in his life when there was so much despair and suffering, it seemed like God was nowhere in it, like he'd just up and been deserted. yet he has found that, if in these times of darkness he is just patient for long enough, God always reveals himself. wait on the LORD. when if feels like all hope is gone and you're at a point in the tunnel where you feel like you'll never see daylight again, wait on the LORD. He is good. and though at that time it may not feel like it, He is still in control and will reveal Himself to you when the timing is right. His timing is perfect.

david was not saying to sit around and wait for the voice of God to speak to you and tell you some hardcore awesome plan for your future and how exactly to go about doing that. am i knocking those people who preach on sunday or stand up in convo and claim they saw a sign or heard a call as clear as crystal and everything in their lives snapped and BAM! now they've got the whole thing planned in widescreen, hdtv format and they're dead center in God's will? of course not. you may be an exception. God may have something so special planned for you that you need to have some direct signal of where to go. but you should know the rules -- don't bet on the exception. plan as if you're the normality. it won't be a big difference if God has to redirect you a bit. on the other hand, if you plan that you're the exception and you aren't, you'll wind up fifty, settling for second best in your personal pew (complete with your own butt imprint) waiting even still to see where God's going to call you.

people like to compare themselves to samuel. you realize of course that he was very much an exception, right? i mean think about it, he was so not anticipating a direct call from the voice of God that he didn't realize that's what he heard when it happened. and it's not like he was out of touch with God or anything. he worked in the temple -- directly under the high priest. and while eli certainly wasn't the high priest of the millennium, he was in contact with God. and was sammy sitting around on his hind quarters waiting before his call? of course not. he'd chosen a path and was studying under the high priest, living at the temple, doing everything within his power to head in the right direction and learn as much about God as possible.

so even if you wanted to use him as a reference, he's still not a good example. he was more than just a choir member/sunday school teacher waiting on God's direction. he'd chosen a path and was striving to that end with all his might.

look at paul. great man; prime example of leader in the church and what the power of God can do. did you ever see paul waiting on the Lord? of course not. it even sounds ludicrous. what does paul do? he takes action. he makes a plan and goes with it. he headed toward asia, got a no. did God save time and tell him before hand not to go to asia? no. did he sit and wait for someone to tell him where to go? no. he just went. and when God wanted to redirect him, He made it clear. paul chose another path, got a no. chose to go toward rome (in the general direction of macedonia by the way) and what happened? he got the go ahead. the "macedonian call" in fact was less a call by God to stop waiting because paul got his answer then it was the "macedonian thumbs up". paul had gotten so many nos in a row that God rewarded him with a yes. (no doubt he was probably feeling a bit unsure by that point.)

so then what does this mean? my generation is good at waiting. waiting for this; waiting for that; waiting for something big to come along. am i saying it's wrong for us while we're in college or just strait out to be confused and test the water in several directions and look for signs from God as to which direction is the right one? of course not! half my friends are looking for internships or jobs or grad schools and it's fine to be unsure of where exactly we're going after may. i'm still not sure. but i think we should be striving with all our might toward those internships, jobs, and grad schools, doing everything possible to get the go ahead, not sitting idly, willing God to give us the right job when we haven't sent out any resumes. and i don't think we should be looking for big signs from God necessarily. an acceptance letter may be a sign, but a closed door or a rejection call, that's a sign too.

and i think it's stupid to sit and wait for God to direct our path when we haven't chosen one. be like paul. pick a path. pick a career or an internship or a job or a grad school and go with it. if God wants you there don't expect a beaming arrow over the campus and if he doesn't want you there, be willing to adapt. but don't act like you shouldn't move on the off chance that it might be the wrong direction from where God wants you. life's choices aren't always right and wrong. sometimes you get two rights and God lets you choose which way to head. if you're working and following His guidelines (the Bible -- that one's not really just a judgment call), He'll keep you on the path He wants you on. He'll give you a go ahead or a closed door when necessary. but don't expect a voice to tell you the future. if you want that, dial madame serina's 800 number.

find a path. walk it. be flexible. God will lead you if you let Him. but don't just stay at a standstill, going through motions, looking involved, but empty, waiting for some divine intervention in your life.

don't live, all the while just waiting.