I am SO behind in continuing the story of my journey to (and from, and to again) Scotland. Truthfully, the task has seemed somewhat overwhelming, and I have shied away from sitting down to actually start. And now that I am looking at telling the story of the seven years since I returned from Scotland in 2006, it actual;y seems quite simple, and I find I can tell the next chapter of the story in two short words:
I waited.
Truly. I notice that in the last blog post I made note of the fact that the Lord told me I would be returning to Scotland one day. I also notice that I didn't happen to say that I felt like the Lord told me I would return to Scotland one day to live there. I would love to say that I then waited through the years with saint-like patience, knowing that Lord would fulfill His words when He knew that the time was right, and that I did not even once question this or feel frustrated, nor did I ever experience a feeling of just wanting God to get on with it.
Yah. Right.
A whole lot more accurate would be to say that I continued to believe the words spoken were true but at the same time was longing for the time to come. I had seasons where I looked for job after job overseas, just to see if I could find something that felt right so I could just go. I had seasons where I wanted to escape from whatever was going on in my life in Vancouver and so my thoughts naturally drifted often to Scotland. Did I have seasons where I waited patiently? Well, if I am to be honest, yes, sometimes. But definitely not always.
Seven long years of waiting. But different from Jacob, I did not know that seven years was the time frame within which I was waiting. However, when the Lord speaks, His words do not return to Him void, without accomplishing that for which they were spoken. God does not speak promises in vain.
The seven-year wait was about to end.
