You know, I have to say that this trip toward gratitude is taking a detour I never expected.  I was picturing a lot of rosy sunshine and rainbows as I learned to say thank-you a little more often until it became a habit and a heart condition.

I didn't expect such brutal self-examination.   I guess I never contemplated that "demo" work had to come first before gratitude could be rebuilt in the empty spaces.  But I must admit that this is, indeed, the turn I've taken.  And, I must also admit that the mirror displaying discontent is something I'd much rather just look away from.  However, gratitude is the goal.  So, I must press on.

Last week, I blogged about discontent.  Then, I felt led to do a follow-up.  If it was a trilogy, this would be part three.  Because straight to the heart of the matter, God reminded me on Sunday of another aspect of discontent.  Not just being unhappy with what I don't have...but being unhappy about waiting for what I want.  You see, two pressing issues burden my heart.  And they have for months and years.  Years, I tell you.  I feel a sense of relief coming, but all in good time.  All in God's time. And there is the rub.

Waiting.  Is there any more brutal job we are called to do?  Even we feel a whisper of promise that it's just a matter of time, it's incredibly hard to just wait.  Waiting is so passive.  The delayed gratification of wishes and dreams and prayers requires our surrender.  Our ability to submit ourselves to His will in His timing.  For my control freak, type A personality, just about no greater torture exists than having to release and wait.   The waiting season is a time of discontent, indeed.  As I'm learning, where discontentment lives, gratitude has no room.

Imagine my surprise as we dove into that not-too-often explored book of Habakkuk on Sunday night in small group.  Habakkuk?  Yes, let me get out my table of contents.  Who knew that there in those pages, within that study time, I'd get yet another lesson dealing with discontent.  But, there it was.  As Tim, our small group teacher, called out the idea of waiting.  Did you know that Habakkuk is essentially a dialogue between a prophet forced to wait and a God who said keep waiting?  Yeah, me neither.  

Evil was winning in the land of Judah.  And Habakkuk, a prophet of God, cried out in complaint.  How long, God?  How long must we wait for justice and salvation?  God's "reassuring" answer involved the truth that the Israelites would be crushed by the Babylonians BEFORE justice would prevail.  Wow, that's great.  Thanks, God.  When wait for it includes a, "hey--wait.  Things will get worse.  Way worse.  And THEN, things will get better!"

Anyone feel as though this is the story of your life?  You're waiting for an answer, for relief, for help NOW, please.  Yet, you sense that things might get worse before they get better.  Not so reassuring, is it?  Talk about discontent.

While we don't always have a choice about our season of waiting--and therein lies the problem, we do have a choice to make about our response.  I'll share with you the three options that we touched on in our small group.  

When God says, "Wait for it!"  And, our response is "Do I HAVE to?"...Here are three options.

1.  Remember his truths.