Patience...

So there's a passage in the Old Testament that I can't get out of me head. I read this passage a week ago when I was preparing for the middle school Sunday school class that I teach. Here's the passage...

This is the account of Abraham's son Isaac. Abraham became the father of Isaac, and Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan Aram and sister of Laban the Aramean. Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was barren. The LORD answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, "Why is this happening to me?" So she went to inquire of the LORD.The LORD said to her, "Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger."When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb. The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau. After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau's heel; so he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them.

Here's what I can't get out of my head...

• How old was Isaac when he got married? 40 years old.
• Isaac's wife, Rebekah, couldn't have kids so Isaac prayed for his wife. Nice guy. Praying for your wife is a good thing to do when she's going through a hard time.
• The Lord answered his prayer. God is faithful.
• Rebekah is pregnant with twin boys, and they fight while they are in the womb. I guess boys will be boys.
• How old was Isaac when all of this happened? 60 years old.
  

It's that last point that I can't get out of my head. Isaac prayed for his wife and God answered his prayer, but it took 20 years! Now, it could have been a little less, because I don't think Isaac started to pray right after they got married, but still there was quite a bit of time that passed between Isaac praying for his wife and God answering his prayer.

I've read this passage many times, and I've never thought about this point. I just thought that Isaac prayed and boom, God answered. After all, Isaac was an important guy in Israel's history, so God must have answered all of his prayers right away, right? I guess not. A lot of time passed by between Isaac praying and the twins being born. I wonder how Isaac and Rebekah felt during this time? I wonder if they ever gave up hope? I wonder if they ever got discouraged?

As I think about this passage, I can't help but think that God's timing isn't the same as our timing. We live in a world where people, myself included, want things right away, and this attitude even seeps into our prayer life. When we pray we expect God to answer right now! We want Him to get us out of our problems right now! But God's timing isn't our timing. Sometimes it takes 20 years. Sometimes it takes longer. Sometimes, prayers that we pray seem to never be answered.

But what I've learned is that it's often through the process -- whether it's 20 years or longer -- that God teaches us. We want God to fix the problem, just so it will go away. But maybe, just maybe, God' wants us to go through the problem so that we will learn something far greater than just receiving an answer to prayer?

So, what are prayers are your praying that seem to go unanswered? May you find hope in Isaac, who prayed for years that his wife would get pregnant, and finally God answered.