I must admit to feeling a little nervous these past few days. You see, our younger daughter is due to have her second child, a breech baby, by caesarean this week. The date is set, but because her first child was born very quickly—in fact, while she was trying to walk from the bathroom to her bed in the hospital birthing unit—she is a little on tenterhooks with this one. She is sure the baby will not wait for that due date. So we wait and wonder. Will she make it to that planned caesarean? Or will the baby make up its own mind and opt for an earlier entry into the world?
‘I can’t wait till the new baby to be born!’ our granddaughter and the baby’s cousin told her parents recently. But, like all of us, she has to curb her impatience, hold onto that excitement and just plain wait—never easy for a seven year old.
I was reminded of another kind of waiting this past weekend when, despite the rain and a painful back, I decided to plant two seedlings I obtained for free from our local council. You see, the ground was so soft, making it easier to clear enough weeds away to enable me to dig those small holes and plant my callistemon and nandina. And the moist ground and humid weather will help my new little shrubs to survive and hopefully flourish. But it will all take time—years, in fact, before those shrubs are the size I would like them to be.
So many things in our lives require waiting, don’t they? As an author, I am well acquainted with this whole process—waiting for manuscript readers to comment, waiting for months to hear back from publishers to whom you have submitted your precious first few chapters, waiting for the whole editing process to be completed, waiting for that release date, waiting until the those copies arrive on the bookshelves in stores, waiting for reviews, waiting for those promotional opportunities … on it goes. Along with developing a thick skin, I think any author needs to work at acquiring a hefty dose of patience if he or she is going to survive in the writing world.
And what of our journey with God? As a result of working on my next non-fiction book that reflects on my own life story, I have seen how much I grew during those times of waiting on God—when I stopped to listen and learn, to observe what was happening in the now and to look to God for wisdom and insight. This ‘active waiting’, as it is sometimes described, is a skill I am still learning even now—that precious, God-given art of being ‘present fully to the moment, in the conviction that something is happening where you are’, as Henri Nouwen puts it. God has things to teach me right now, even as I wait for the birth of this new grandchild.
So let’s welcome those waiting periods rather than rush on. God may well be preparing us for what lies ahead. And God may even have deep and wonderful things to reveal to us as we hold our hearts open before him.
Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. Psalm 27:14
Jo-Anne Berthelsen's Blog 
Hi Jo-Anne, I’ve been reading your blogs on ACW and always enjoy them. Today, I thought of reading your blog on Word Press. Your words are stimulating. Hazel Barker
Hi Hazel! Thank you so much for your lovely, encouraging comments about my ACW blogs and also my own personal one here. I have disciplined myself for about four years now to write a weekly blog of my own that says something worthwhile–hopefully! I find it’s good to keep writing and also it helps me take to heart more the lessons God teaches me along the way. I always link my blog to Facebook though, as that enables lots more readers to find my blogs. I wanted to say too that it was lovely to see your comment on my friend Marion Andrews’ blog about writing a biography this past week on the ACW blog. That would be amazing, wouldn’t it, if your husband’s uncle had met Marion’s father–that would be worth a book in itself! Marion was an old school friend of mine in Brisbane but she and her minister husband have lived in Tamworth for many years now. God bless.
Lovely post, Jo-Anne. Had to chuckle though, as I was kept waiting and waiting as that thing on the computer whirled in circles before eventually connecting to your blog. A practical little lesson just to reinforce the point, perhaps? LOL
That’s so funny, Dale! I can just imagine you sitting there chuckling, watching that little circle whirr around, even though I’ve never met you! I find myself writing about waiting a fair bit, as I have the sort of mind that jumps ahead and plans and prepares and thinks about the future a little too much rather than just resting in the present moment and ‘actively waiting’. So writing such blogs reinforces the point to me too. God bless.
How wonderful; another grandchild Jo-Anne. That would have to be one of the hardest types of waiting – rather like a kid waiting for Christmas morning 🙂
I’m also waiting the arrival of a new grandchild (#9) – a boy this time, but have to wait until 5th or May. There are so many things in our Christian walk we get impatient about – we want instant answers to prayer, instant holiness, instant results from inviting someone to church. We sometimes forget – okay, we forget a lot, that God’s timing is different to ours. Another great post, thanks Jo-Anne.
Thanks for your thoughtful comments, Lyn. And my goodness, grandchild Number Nine! We’re only up to Number Four and I expect that might be it, unless our daughter has a really positive experience today with the birth of Number Two and decides for Number Three!
Yes, I sure agree God’s timing is different from ours. And look how patiently he has waited for us and been so forbearing with us down through the years–let alone the centuries. God bless, Lyn!
Great post Jo. I like that idea of active waiting. We’re not just sitting around twiddling our thumbs, but we’re actively preparing in the meantime, and indeed God is preparing us. Re the writing life, one of the reasons I like writing short pieces is that you can have a few on the boil at once. One’s being written, while one’s being edited, while one’s being submitted, while one is waiting to be printed. I guess it’s similar with longer manuscripts, but I think I’d find the “novel” wait more daunting. Thanks for sharing Jo and I hope everything works out really well with your beautiful new grandchild,
Hi, Nola! Yes, the idea of active waiting was originally passed onto me by my lovely mentor Joy, about whom I wrote in my book ‘Soul Friend’. It’s true, isn’t it, that God is there in every part of our lives, in the waiting as well as in those moments of reaching a goal or achieving or whatever. And well done to you, Nola, for having those various pieces of writing on the boil at once! I’m not sure I could do that very well, but I do know that back in 2005, while I waited to find a publisher for my first novel, I began writing my next novel and also tried my hand at lots of short stories, just to fine hone my skills more. I’ve always been so glad I kept on writing–with the result that, when one novel was due for release I had the next one there ready for the publisher! They’ve caught up with me now though because I’ve been too busy speaking!
Thanks too for your kind thoughts re our new grandchild. We look forward to welcoming him or her later today! God bless.
Sometimes I think I have the waiting game under-control. I don’t mind queues, don’t get impatient in traffic (unless someone is waiting anxious at the other end) etc.
But when it comes to waiting for something I really, really want, or a knowledge or guidance about something? That’s when I get impatient and start to worry.
Thanks for this lovely reminder that waiting for God’s timing is always worth it.
And I hope your new precious grandchild comes at exactly the right time! (How exciting!)
Thanks, Penny! I’m sure you’re not the only one who gets impatient and starts to worry when I’m waiting for something important or for clear guidance! Just as well God’s so patient with us!
Good to read in you last ‘Penny Drops’ update that you have plans for your fourth Tanya Abbey book. You sure have been very patient and had to wait lots as far as they are concerned. God bless you this year with all you’re involved in.
And yes, I’m sure our grandchild Number Four will arrive just at the right time–which is currently scheduled for late this afternoon! We have his or her big brother with us right now!
Hi Jo-Anne,
I’ve had my share of the type of waiting you mention too, regarding both books and babies. How exciting for you all, awaiting the arrival of the new little grandchild. I hope all goes smoothly, very soon.
Thanks, Paula! We expect to hear in the next couple of hours, hopefully–that’s unless our daughter has been bumped of the list of ops until tomorrow!
And yes, I’m sure you know lots about waiting in all sorts of ways in your book journey. I’m currently waiting to find a bit more energy after my recent back op and also waiting to find a bit more inspiration with my latest book, but I know I’ll get there in God’s time.
Hope all goes well with Tina xx
Hi Louise! Thanks so much. We have just arrived back from the hospital–Tina had a little girl at 5.30pm but Kofi couldn’t get to let us know until about 7.30, so we dived out to Blacktown Hospital quickly with her older brother, whom we were minding! She weighs 3.6kg and seems fit and healthy–her name is Maxine Marie Antwi Konadu. Marie is my second name and Antwi is Kofi’s mother’s last name. In Ghana children don’t have the same surname as their parents, so Kofi’s mum isn’t Konadu–all a bit confusing! I’ll pass on your greetings to Tina. Love the photos of your little one on Facebook, so keep them coming! I don’t like to put any up until Tina and Kofi do, but I’m sure I’ll have some up there soon. God bless.
Congratulations on the new arrival. Glad it all went well.
Lately I’ve been reminded of Biblical people who had to wait – Moses 40 years in the wilderness, Joseph waiting to be released from prison, David waiting to be king, Isaiah waiting for God’s people to repent, Paul waiting in prison etc. Looks like we are in good company!
Thanks, Susan. Yes, it was lovely to visit our daughter in hospital not long after the birth last night. Then this morning we got to cuddle our new little granddaughter Maxine, which was special. Re your comments about waiting, that is such a good point re our being in good company with all those people in Scripture that you mentioned. We think we are hard done by if we have to wait a couple of years to find a publisher–that’s nothing compared to all those years Moses and others had to wait! sure glad I didn’t have to wait forty years to find a publisher though as I would have been almost a hundred!