Who We Are: Waiting on God

After the initial “calling” experience I related in the previous post, April and I returned home, shared the experience with our pastor and some of our closest friends, and began to seek God for confirmation and clarity. With the intense nature of the “vision” God had given me, I expected things to move quickly and easily. However, what happened instead was a long period of time in which God spoke to me about many things--but when it came to Huntsville I only encountered radio silence. 

It was only after I had given up begging God for an answer and left it in his hands that he brought the needed confirmation, in the form of a chance encounter with Huntsville residents in the mountains of Virginia. This incredible “coincidence” became my “sign from God,” and the first doorway into the community. It took several more months of preparation before we were able to move to Muskoka, and over a year before we started services. That’s a total of three long years between the initial “calling” and the first service!

Since then, God has brought us to many places where we needed to wait for him to provide--and it was always longer than we wanted it to be. We waited to grow to a point of financial sustainability. We waited for relief from the grinding setup and teardown routine at Riverside. We waited for a place to call home. We waited for him to provide an associate pastor, and now a lead pastor.  At each point our waiting was rewarded. God was faithful: he brought clarity, provided for our needs, and exceeded our expectations. But he did not do so according to our schedule.

I think this has been a pattern for a reason: I needed to learn (and perhaps a few of you as well) that I was not in control, that God could be trusted, and that life and church do not need to happen at the breakneck speed we are so accustomed to in our society. God does not seem to mind periods of non-productivity, periods of questioning and lament, periods of searching and planning. And I think in the process he has created a church that is committed to waiting for him to lead and provide—even when it appears he has forgotten us or is letting us down. That’s why the lyric, “We won’t move without you,” from the song “The Lord Our God” always brings a smile to my face, as I think of how we as a community have lived that out.

I will wait for the Lord, who is hiding his face from the descendants of Jacob. I will put my trust in him. - Isaiah 8:17