The days between Christmas and New Years are so strange to me. I find that there’s a relaxing element to the hustle of Christmas preparations being done, but there is also a time of being bummed that it’s over. Then there’s the anxiety I feel in getting Christmas packed away and my son’s birthday prepped all before going back to work after the New Year.
There are other times in our lives that we feel this roller coaster of emotions in the “in-between time.” For instance, the days between finding out you’re pregnant to your tummy actually rounding; the days between a college application and an acceptance letter; the days between a job interview and a return phone call…even the days between Sunday to Sunday for church services. Each of these examples is like the days after Christmas, which are all involving excitement, disappointment, relief, worry or anxiety, and hopefully the return of excitement.
The Bible is filled with examples of people experiencing the “in-between days.” Noah had days of waiting in between being told to build an Ark and the day the flood began. Ruth had days of waiting between leaving with Naomi and being married to Boaz. Saul had days of waiting between being blinded on the road to Damascus and being able to see again…and share the Gospel. Even the disciples and the Mary’s experienced the in-between days emotions when Jesus was crucified and later raised from the grave.
Whether we’re in our own examples of in-between days or reading of Biblical examples, we are able to determine that God is teaching us to wait on Him. Here are several scriptures that show us there is guidance in the Bible about our waiting during the in-between times:
The Lord is good to those who await Him, to the person who seeks Him. ~Lamentations 3:25 (NASB)
Wait for the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the Lord. ~Psalm 27:14 (NASB)
Therefore, be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains. ~James 5:7 (NASB)
Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me.” ~Acts 1:4 (NASB)
There are countless examples of waiting in the Bible….and many teaching moments where the Lord wants us to know about waiting. In the days immediately after Christmas and leading into New Years, I’m reminded that I’m not alone in the rollercoaster of emotions of the “in-between” time.
I’m praying that we are all patient this week while we are in those “in-between days.”
~Emily
Iron Porch 