We’ve finally gathered all the necessary paperwork to apply for our visas! We have an appointment at the Italian Consulate office in Seattle next Tuesday. Please pray for grace and favor in our interview, as well as travel mercies as we drive over the pass. Please also pray that God will make it clear to us what day we should set as our departure date.
While all this waiting has been difficult, I’m so grateful for God’s grace in allowing us to be here longer than we anticipated. Over the past couple months (months we thought we’d be in Italy) we’ve been so blessed! By being here, we were able to get acquainted with our son’s lovely girlfriend; we’ve made many wonderful memories with our grandchildren; I’ve enjoyed an extended (and much needed) season of rest after working a 60-hour week job and now it looks like we may even get to spend Christmas with our family! God’s plans always work out so much better than our own! I’ve learned this so many times, I’m not sure why I get so frustrated and fidgety in the waiting seasons that come my way.
One of the Hebrew words most often translated “wait “ is “qavah” which can mean “to look patiently”, “to hope expectantly” or “look eagerly”. Another is the word “yachal” and is sometimes translated as “trust” or “wait in hope”. A third is “daman” which means to “rest”, “grow silent” or “be still” and a fourth is the word “chakah” which means to “long for”.
I do love the “longing for”, anticipation phase of planning a trip. I truly enjoy the season of “looking eagerly forward” to Christmas even more than Christmas Day itself. And “rest”, I REALLY like that concept! My prayer is that I’ll remember these lessons and joyfully embrace the next waiting season that God brings into my life! In the mean time I want to jump and shout, “WOOHOO!” because it looks like this one may finally be coming to a close!
“They that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” ~ Isaiah 40:31