By Lynna Clark

This is my gardening bench, patiently waiting for Spring. Pots are ready. Dirt is on standby. Spades long to be picked up and used for good. Nearby chairs rock slightly with the winter wind. Even though the sun is shining, the calendar reports that it’s only February. Wait we must.

I could force the issue. My indoor starter plants beg to keep my potting table company. Roots of sweet potato vines and Wandering Jew would feel much more at home in dirt than in the bottles of water on my windowsill. Sunshine can be a deceptive friend. She calls out, “Come! Why wait? Let’s take charge of this day!”

Experience warns that sooner is not always better.

So we wait.

And pray.

Lord, please fill these hands… these pews… these hearts… this table… my empty bed… my life… this crib.

The hope we once had disappears behind the dark cloud of disappointment. And we continue to wait. And pray.

“I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!”*

Then one day, winter becomes a distant memory.

“I will never forget this awful time, as I grieve over my loss. Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The faithful love of the LORD never ends. His mercies never cease.” **

Dear sweet Lord of heaven and earth, please strengthen us in the waiting. Help us give You glory, knowing You love us and care about our lives. You have given us the desires that wait in our hearts. You’ve told us to ask and never give up.*** Thy will be done. We love and trust You ever more.

*Mark9:24

**Lamentations3:20-22

***Luke18:1