Are you a good waiter? Not the restaurant kind. The waiting on God kind.

I’m not. At least not as good as I’d like to be.

I let my mind get the best of me when I’m waiting. I start to imagine worst possible outcomes. The news from the doctor won’t be good. We’ll run out of money. One of my children will be harmed. My work won’t be successful.

Rarely do I imagine best possible outcomes.

What about you? What are you waiting for? And what are you imagining?

Exodus 19:1-2 says, “Exactly two months after the Israelites left Egypt, they arrived in the wilderness of Sinai. After breaking camp at Rephidim, they came to the wilderness of Sinai and set up camp there at the base of Mount Sinai.”

So it’s been two months since they witnessed God do some heavy duty miracles to get them out of Egypt, culminating with the Passover when He killed all the first born in Egypt, but passed over the homes of the Israelites. And while in the wilderness, God has been providing water and manna for them.

At the end of chapter 29, we get some insight into what God is up to:

“Then I will live among the people of Israel and be their God, and they will know that I am the Lord their God. I am the one who brought them out of the land of Egypt so that I could live among them. I am the Lord their God.”

God’s plan was to bring His people out of Egypt and then live among them. He would be their God. They would be His people.

Sounds like a good plan.

So while they’re camped at the base of Mt. Sinai, God calls Moses and Joshua to come to the top of the mountain to meet with Him. That’s when God gives the law to Moses. This takes forty days.

Meanwhile, back at camp, things aren’t going so well with Moses away. Chapter 32 begins this way:

When the people saw how long it was taking Moses to come back down the mountain, they gathered around Aaron. “Come on,” they said, “make us some gods who can lead us. We don’t know what happened to this fellow Moses, who brought us here from the land of Egypt.”

So Aaron said, “Take the gold rings from the ears of your wives and sons and daughters, and bring them to me.”

All the people took the gold rings from their ears and brought them to Aaron. Then Aaron took the gold, melted it down, and molded it into the shape of a calf. When the people saw it, they exclaimed, “O Israel, these are the gods who brought you out of the land of Egypt!”

Uh oh.

Think about what these people had seen. With their own eyes. And yet within forty days they turned from God and decided to bow down to a golden calf made out of their own jewelry. God is furious and is ready to destroy them, but Moses pleads with Him not to do it and God listens.

Now it’s tempting to read this account and think God is overreacting. I mean, come on God, what’s the big deal? They’re not hurting anyone. So what if they want to worship a golden calf?

It’s actually a big deal because it’s the deal. It’s the only deal. You and I were made to live in relationship with God and worship Him. We’re not here to simply be good citizens of planet earth. Speaking of Jesus, Colossians 1:16 says, “…all things have been created through him and for him.”

If we’re not good waiters, then it’s easy to get our lives completely off track. We can’t see how things will work out. God doesn’t appear to be doing anything to help us. We get anxious and take matters into our own hands. Rather than seek God, we seek relief.

The Israelites didn’t know when Moses would be back. They got restless and didn’t want to wait any longer. They wanted someone to lead them. Maybe they began to imagine Moses wasn’t even coming back. Maybe they imagined the nations around them were about to attack.

What if instead they had imagined something good? “If Moses has been gone this long, then I’ll bet he’s got some really cool stuff to tell us when he gets back. Can you imagine all the good stuff God must have planned for us? After all He’s already done for us, I can’t wait to see what’s ahead!”

What about you? What are you waiting for? What longing are you waiting to be fulfilled?

Will you choose to imagine the good God has in store for you?

I know it’s hard. I struggle with it too. But I know this–God is good and He can be trusted. He can fulfill our longings or He can fill us with peace in the waiting.