A Rainbow of Hope

“But I will keep on hoping for your help; I will praise you more and more.” Psalm 71:14

Noah. His story seems to be painted on the walls of every church nursery. And yet his story is so much more than the two-by-twos of turtles and toucans. So why do we start telling our children this story at such a young age? Why is Noah a patriarch of faith and hope?

I believe it was because he had to wait. The Bible recounts his story in Genesis 6. “Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living on earth at the time, and he walked in close fellowship with God.” (6:9) It then goes on to say that when Noah went into the ark he was 600 years old. (7:6) If you ask me, that’s a whole lot of waiting and wondering what God is going to do about the abounding sin and disaster around you. “Now God saw that the earth had become corrupt and was filled with violence. God observed all this corruption in the world, for everyone on earth was corrupt.” (6: 11-12)

We’ve all had to wait for something. Our drink at Starbucks. Traffic lights. Test results. A reply to a certain text. Our world is filled with moments of waiting. Maybe your waiting is a bit more serious.

Maybe you’re waiting to figure out what major and life path you should take.

Maybe you’re waiting for that perfect prince charming to come along.

Maybe you’re waiting for God to grant you a child.

No matter what you’re waiting for, it’s never fun. I have always been the most impatient person, especially when it came to waiting on God to fulfill my desire of being in a relationship. I honestly hated being single. Before I figured out how to wait in singleness I made a decent amount of unwise relationship choices. It took me a lot of waiting and stillness and alone time to be semi-ok with my singleness. Still, I knew that I wasn’t going to be alone for the rest of my life. I believed and hoped that God would fulfill that desire in His perfect time.

God has placed within each of us a desire for something. Since He placed that seed of hope and desire in us, He will grow it as He sees fit. But sometimes that seed doesn’t grow the way that we wanted. Sometimes God wants our desires to change. And sometimes the seed He wants to grow in us is more of a desire for Him.

That’s where we have trouble though, isn’t it? We want that seed to grow fast and grow now. We hate waiting just as much as Noah did. The Bible doesn’t say he got frustrated, but can’t we imagine that he had some questions? Noah never planned to build a giant ark, be ridiculed, and then be trapped in it, and yet God brought him through and fulfilled the promise in the end.

I believe that since Noah had been walking with God he took every day in stride. He knew that God would fulfill His promise of protection. (6:18) And God certainly did in the most beautiful of ways. “Then God said to Noah, ‘Yes, this rainbow is the sign of the covenant I am confirming with all the creatures on earth.’” (Genesis 9:17) God has made a covenant and a promise to fulfill His desire in your heart. He will bring you through the waiting.

Reflection:

1. What desire(s) has God placed in your heart that you’re still waiting on?

2. What are some practical steps you can take to walk in hope and patience with God, waiting on Him to fulfill His promise?

Prayer

God, I’m not very good at waiting. I need Your patience as I continue to allow Your Holy Spirit to grow that seed of hope in me. May this time of waiting be one that glorifies You. Amen.