Let Down | Waiting

A man named Simeon was in Jerusalem. He was righteous and devout. He eagerly anticipated the restoration of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. The Holy Spirit revealed to him that he wouldn't die before he had seen the Lord's Christ.  (Luke 2:25-26 CEB)

Simeon had been waiting his entire life for this moment. We don't know how old Simeon was when Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the temple. But we know he was old enough that he didn't expect to live much longer. The Holy Spirit had promised him that he wouldn't die before he saw the Lord's Christ – the Messiah – and now, finally, that day had come.

Think about what that means. Simeon had spent decades waiting for God to fulfill this promise. Every morning when he woke up, he wondered if this would be the day. Every time he went to the temple, he looked for any sign that the Messiah had come. Every time he heard news of a baby being born, he hoped this might be the one.

And year after year, nothing happened. The promise remained unfulfilled. The waiting continued.

Most of us would have given up. Most of us would have decided that we'd misheard God or that the promise wasn't really for us or that it just wasn't going to happen. Most of us would have stopped hoping and moved on with our lives.

But Simeon didn't. He kept waiting. He kept hoping. He kept trusting that God would fulfill his promise, no matter how long it took.

And then, one ordinary day, it happened. Mary and Joseph walked into the temple carrying their baby, and Simeon knew. This was it. God had kept his promise.

We need to learn from Simeon's example. Because we live in a world that doesn't value waiting. We want everything immediately. We expect instant results. We get frustrated when things don't happen on our timeline.

But God doesn't work on our schedule. That doesn't mean God has forgotten about us. It doesn't mean God's promises aren't true. It just means that God's timing is perfect, even when it doesn't match our expectations.

Maybe you're waiting for something right now. Maybe you've been praying for something for years and nothing has happened yet. Maybe you're starting to wonder if God even hears your prayers or if he cares about what you're going through.

Simeon would tell you to keep waiting. Keep hoping. Keep trusting. Because God always keeps his promises. He just does it on his own timeline, not ours.

And here's what else Simeon would tell you: when God finally does fulfill his promise, when that moment you've been waiting for finally arrives, it will be worth every second of the wait. Every year of hoping and wondering and trusting will make sense when you finally see what God was doing all along.

So don't give up. Instead, be like Simeon. Stay faithful. Stay expectant. Stay ready for the moment when God finally says, "Now. This is it. This is what you've been waiting for." Because that moment will come. God's promises never fail.

Closing Prayer:

God, waiting is hard. We don't like it. We want answers now. We want solutions now. We want your promises fulfilled now. But help us to trust your timing. Help us to be like Simeon, faithful and patient even when the waiting seems endless. Strengthen our faith. Keep our hope alive. And help us to be ready when you finally say it's time. Amen.