As Indigenous people across North America, we are known for being a people group that wait. Historically, Indigenous people have waited and relied on the different seasons. We have waited for berry picking seasons; we have waited for various hunting seasons; we have waited for seasons of the land freezing and thawing. Then through colonization we have waited on the government and churches to come through with their promises.
We know what it is like to feel blessed because we have been a people that used to make use of everything right in front of us, such as using every part of the buffalo for a multitude of purposes. We also know what it is like to feel the injustices of society over the last 450 years, all within the theme of waiting.
I have learned over the years that although the Creator uses people in our lives to bless us, comfort us and provide for us, the Creator is the one who ultimately provides for us and comforts us and brings healing to our hearts and lives. When people have let us down or seasons have let us down, it wasn't the Creator letting us down. It was the result of living in a world that is fallen. Therefore, we must trust our Creator when waiting. God the Father sent His Son into the world to save us all from ourselves and the weaknesses of sin that have been coursing through our veins since Adam and Eve disobeyed the Creator God in the Garden of Eden as seen in Genesis 2:4-3:24.
The holy Scriptures hold the very words of life that give us hope as we wait on the Creator to right the wrongs that have been committed against us over the years. We wait on the government to see us as humans made in God's image. We wait on non-Indigenous people to stop looking at us with disdain. We even wait on fellow Indigenous people to turn their lives around and enter the path of healing because we see how some of their lives are self-destructive. Yet, we also see many fellow Indigenous people making use of the opportunities before them and obtaining careers in everything from acting to professional sports to doctoral graduates and professors and financial experts.
In the Gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John we see the story of Jesus being born during what is known as the Christmas story. In this story we see that Mary waited nine months to give birth to Jesus after a miracle conception. We see Joseph waiting for his stepson, Jesus, to be born and all the excitement and wonder of being a human father to this miracle that was about to happen. We see the wisemen and shepherds waiting to see the Son of God and worship Him. We read about King Herod waiting to see if he could kill this newborn baby, because he was threatened by Him. We hear the cries of all those families mourning over the loss of all those babies and toddlers because King Herod was trying to kill Jesus by the process of elimination in his hatred and madness.
Life is filled with examples of human waiting. We get impatient, we get filled with anxiety and we wait and wait and wait. The good news is that when we place our trust in the Creator to help us heal and to support us in His way and His timing, then we truly find healing in hearts. Our waiting then has not been placed in people and places and institutions and governments. Our waiting is then placed in the hands of the One who created us and sustains us and has given us our very lives.
Jesus came into this world and had a ministry here for 33 years so we could experience healing from the ultimate source of healing who is Jesus himself. Healing in this life and ultimate healing in the next life for those who have put their trust in Jesus gives us true and meaningful hope. We experience healing in our hearts when we wait on Jesus to give us comfort and ask Him through the Holy Spirit to comfort us.
In John 14:18, Jesus said, " I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you."
This verse implies that some type of waiting has been involved. Waiting to be saved. Waiting to be comforted. Waiting to be delivered. Waiting to be rescued.
As this year ends and as you go through the Christmas season, don't allow your waiting on others to take away your healing.
What are you waiting for? What do you need healing from? Place your full trust in Jesus to heal your heart in all situations and circumstances as you wait. Then you will find healing that comes from the one (Jesus), who loves you unconditionally and wants you to find healing and meaning in your life. Wait on Him!
Parry Stelter is a Bible teacher, author, and speaker. He is founder of Word of Hope Ministries. If you are interested in having Parry do a workshop on dealing with grief, loss and trauma, you can contact him at parry@wordofhopeministries.ca
