Anointed and Waiting – Two2Grow, May 13
Anointed and Waiting – Two2Grow, May 13
Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. Luke 2:25 NIV
The culture we live in is an instant gratification culture with easy access to everything. We have instant coffee, fast food, and microwaves. With Internet and streaming services like Netflix, we can binge-watch all the episode of our favorite series. With credit cards and Amazon Prime the stuff we want can be at our doorstep within hours. We don’t like to wait. What we desire we want to have now.
Because we live in this consumer culture that privileges instant gratification, we also think that the closer we get to God the faster things will move. Yet what we learn from the story of Simeon is that God’s economy works very differently.
Simeon was an anointed, righteous and devout believer—who had to wait! We are not told how long he had to wait but I’m sure it was more than just a day or two. Possibly for years. The Bible says that “It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah” (Luke 2:26).
We learn from Simeon that being Spirit-filled and waiting are not opposites. Walking closely with the Lord and waiting on the Lord go hand in hand. So don’t be discouraged if you feel that things are not moving as fast you would like them to. God has not forgotten about you. Keep your course and you will see the fulfillment of God’s promises in God’s time, just as Simeon.
Jesus, give me the strength to wait for the fulfillment of Your promises, even when it seems to take a long time. Help me not to lose hope, but to trust that one day I, like Simeon, will embrace the fulfillment of Your promise.
The culture we live in is an instant gratification culture with easy access to everything. We have instant coffee, fast food, and microwaves. With Internet and streaming services like Netflix, we can binge-watch all the episode of our favorite series. With credit cards and Amazon Prime the stuff we want can be at our doorstep within hours. We don’t like to wait. What we desire we want to have now.
Because we live in this consumer culture that privileges instant gratification, we also think that the closer we get to God the faster things will move. Yet what we learn from the story of Simeon is that God’s economy works very differently.
Simeon was an anointed, righteous and devout believer—who had to wait! We are not told how long he had to wait but I’m sure it was more than just a day or two. Possibly for years. The Bible says that “It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah” (Luke 2:26).
We learn from Simeon that being Spirit-filled and waiting are not opposites. Walking closely with the Lord and waiting on the Lord go hand in hand. So don’t be discouraged if you feel that things are not moving as fast you would like them to. God has not forgotten about you. Keep your course and you will see the fulfillment of God’s promises in God’s time, just as Simeon.
Jesus, give me the strength to wait for the fulfillment of Your promises, even when it seems to take a long time. Help me not to lose hope, but to trust that one day I, like Simeon, will embrace the fulfillment of Your promise.