For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. (Romans 8:24-25)
One thing that many biblical characters have in common is that much of their life was spent waiting on God. Noah waited and waited for rain. Abraham waited for a son and Jacob for a wife. Joseph had a God-given dream as a young man, but had to wait for many difficult years before it was fulfilled. God made His suffering people wait in Egypt and had Moses wait to rescue them. David was anointed king as a youth, but had to wait until he was thirty to be the king.
We hate waiting, and waiting is hard, but God has made it a substantial part of everyone’s life. What are you waiting for? Maybe your wedding day gave you the hope of an intimate, joy-filled marriage, and you’re still waiting. Perhaps you are still hoping to be married at all. Many of us have had great expectations for our children, yet they have not become a reality. Maybe you felt called to accomplish something in ministry and are still waiting even for the opportunity, let alone its fulfillment.
God is pleased with such hopes and we should never let go of them. While we have no guarantee of their fulfillment, they are a hope in God, and if they do come to pass they will surely glorify Him. And while we wait on God, we continue to walk with Him, serving and trusting Him in our current circumstances. And if some of those hopes we hold so dear never happen, we rejoice that the greatest hope of all— Heaven—will be ours.