Eight years is a long time to wait for victory.
I watched the State of Origin game tonight (I feel legitimately Aussie now) and was happy for NSW, who hadn’t won the series in 8 years.
How long are you willing to wait for a win? How long are you willing to fight?
If it’s worth it, we say, we’re willing to clench our fists and keep running the race, no matter how many times we’re knocked down.
If it’s worth it.
Is God worth it?
Maybe not. Perhaps you’re too tired of the same old game of hide-n-seek with God, where it seems you’re always apart – either crouching behind shields of shame and doubt or searching for a Divinity that’s too silent and invisible. Perhaps you’re about to throw in the towel or already given up but just going through the motions in guilt-fuelled denial.
But what if the Israelites had stopped marching around Jericho after six times? (Joshua 6)
What if Captain Naaman had only washed in the Jordan River six times? (2 Kings 5)
What if you had left Jerusalem before Resurrection morning? (Luke 24)
Imagine this scene: The sky is red – fiery red. Smoke is still rising from the ashes of the stone altar Elijah had carefully rebuilt from the withered rubbles of Mount Carmel. The ground is so dry that you can feel the sharp ridges of the cracks on the soles of your feet. It has been three years since there was any rain.
While the air is still crackling from the fire and drought, Elijah says to Ahab, “There is the sound of a heavy rain.”
Where, Elijah?
There is but the sound of thirsty men panting for relief.
Elijah bends down to the ground and puts his face between his knees.
“Go and look toward the sea,” he tells his servant.
“There is nothing there.”
“Go back and look towards the sea.”
“There is nothing there.”
“Go back and look again.”
“There is nothing there.”
Seven times the servant looks.
Finally, he says, “A cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising from the sea.”
Suddenly, the sky grows black, the wind rises, and a heavy rain starts pouring down on the hungry land. (1 Kings 18:41-46)
Perhaps you’ve seen nothing yet. Perhaps your soul is parched, lonely, and worn… you feel you’ve been fighting giants alone. But don’t give up now. An outpouring of the Spirit is coming – Habakkuk 2:3 “For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.”
That revelation of God will not be in the wind, or the earthquake, or the fire, but in the still, small voice that reminds you that you’re not alone; you’re in a team that fights in the multitudes. (1 Kings 19:11-18) And that team, that God – will be worth struggling for.
So fight the good fight, finish the race, keep the faith (2 Timothy 4:7).
There is already a cloud in the horizon; God will come and flood our lives with the power of His grace.
