We live in a culture of ‘doing’ not ‘waiting’. The very concept of ‘waiting’ may seem like ‘idle time’ or ‘unproductive time’, but I think ‘our willingness to wait’ is a sign of something much more significant, in fact, I believe it is so significant that it warrants serious reflection.

Let’s begin this reflection with a true-life story of a dog named Hachiko who continues to inspire people all over the world. Hachiko or Hachi (nick-name), a Japanese Akita dog, was born in Japan in 1923. His master was a professor at Tokyo Imperial University. The professor used to travel to work by train and his faithful companion Hachi used to come to the train station everyday to greet him joyfully as he came off the train. One day, tragically, the professor suffered a cerebral haemorrhage at work and died. Hachi was at the train station waiting, but his master did not come home that day.

Hachi could not understand that something had happened to his master, so he continued to do what he had always done. At the same time everyday he went to the train station to wait for his master to come off the train. He could likely hear the sound of the train coming from afar. From May 21, 1925 to March 8, 1935 Hachi returned every day to the Shibuya train station in Tokyo to wait for his master to come off the train. Every day Hachi watched as the people came off the train as he waited patiently for his master.  Hachi did this faithfully every day for over nine years until he died at the train station. In Japan Hachi became a symbol of loyalty and fidelity.

A bronze statue in remembrance of Hachi, the loyal friend who never stopped waiting for his master is on display at the station where he waited day after day for close to a decade.  If you have Netflix you can watch the movie called “Hachi: A Dog’s Tale”. It will likely make you cry and it will certainly make you think.

How long would you wait for your true love?

GOD WAITS FOR HIS PEOPLE

How many days and weeks and months and years does God wait for His people?

If we suddenly saw someone watching us we would probably ask ‘can I help you?’ or ‘what do you want?’ or ‘why do I keep seeing you watching me?’

And if we could see God watching us and we could ask God these questions, God would likely tell us he is watching us out of love.

“I have loved you with an everlasting love. That is why I have continued to be faithful to you.” Jeremiah 31:3

God’s love for us is unstoppable! It is unconditional! It is everlasting! It is faithful!

TRUE LOVE WAITS

God keeps waiting for us to come to Him for assistance.

WHAT DOES GOD WANT?

God wants His love to be reciprocated. God wants to be trusted. God wants His divine sacrifice in the the person of Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, to be remembered and reverenced.  God wants us to wait for Him, for His inspiration and guidance day-by-day.

DO YOU WAIT FOR GOD?

“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10

To truly get to know God and His Only Begotten Son Jesus Christ, we must take time to become still before Him and listen to His voice speak to our hearts. We can all be very impatient at times. We can quickly label a prayer ‘unanswered’ if we give up too quickly on God and stop waiting for Him to answer us.

St Peter reminds us:

“But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3: 8-9

As a mother I have learned the importance of ‘waiting’. Being a parent is not always an easy experience; there are good times and there are bad times and sometimes parental ‘wisdom’ does not meet with ‘respect or acceptance’.

“Wait patiently for the LORD. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the LORD.” Psalm 27:14

“Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!” Isaiah 30:18

God longs to be loved and He waits patiently for souls to give Him access to our lives and our hearts. God wants nothing short of a total surrender from us, total trust, a relationship of complete intimacy that continues through good times and bad times. Let us not tire of waiting for the mercy and love of Our Lord Jesus Christ. God rejoices in answering our prayers and we must trust in His wisdom and righteousness. Sometimes God’s timing and our timing is not perfectly in ‘synch’. This requires that we wait patiently for God to show us His way

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9

For almost a decade, at the same time every day, Hachi went to the train station to wait for his master. It was a sign of his love and fidelity.  Hachi breathed his last breath waiting for his master.

It has been more than a decade now that I go to Calvary every day at the Time Jesus died for us, 3pm, to remember the sacrifice of my Master Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour. At this time I stop and remember Jesus giving His life for us. I see Him dying on the Cross for us and I see TRUE LOVE.

TRUE LOVE WAITS AND TRUE LOVE NEVER GIVES UP!

JOIN ME AND CHRISTIANS ALL OVER THE WORLD THAT GO TO CALVARY IN PRAYER EVERY DAY IN REMEMBRANCE OF THE GREATEST LOVE THE WORLD HAS EVER KNOWN AND WILL EVER KNOW, THE LOVE OF OUR SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST.

Let us unite to pray for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit and then let us wait for Jesus to answer us.  The Holy Spirit is God’s love and God’s power and the Holy Spirit is God and God will bring souls to conversion, silencing the power of evil in our world, healing our world and ushering in new beginnings.   We must trust and pray and keep waiting for God will answer us.

“The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.” Exodus 14:15

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6

Let us remember the great sacrifice of Our Lord Jesus Christ daily at the Time He died for us, 3pm, as we thank Him and tell Him:

“Lord, I’m waiting for You. I love You! Use me as You will for I am Yours.”

Jesus, I will keep coming back to Calvary every day, I will remember You dying for us and I will give You my heart as I pray for the salvation of all souls, trusting in Your infinite mercy.

“I wait for the LORD, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope.” Psalm 130:5