The Wait Always Serves A Purpose

Blessing Orogun February 1, 2023 0

A waiting person is a patient person. The word patience means the willingness to stay where we are and live the situation out to the full in the belief that something hidden there will manifest itself to us.
Henri J.M. Nouwen

Have you ever been in traffic for a prolonged time? It gets worse if you’ve had a very long and annoying day or when you have an important appointment to catch up with.

The most infuriating thing is that the drivers create detours trying to beat the traffic but end up making it more terrible. In the end, most times, you can’t even tell what caused the traffic.

I often wonder what a seed passes through when it is buried in the ground. I know the biology of how it grows into a plant but does it have emotions? I remember reading somewhere about an experiment that was carried out on plants where they were divided into two groups.

One group was told kind words while the other was told mean words. This continued for a couple of days. At the end of the experiment, the group that received kind words blossomed beautifully while the group that received mean words were dishevelled.

This kind of occurrence leaves you wondering whether or not plants have feelings. And if they do, how is it for seeds when they are buried in the dark and waiting until they birth new life? Does it get lonely for them or overwhelming? I never can tell. (I digress)

But this scenario reminds me a lot of us and the paths to our fulfilment. The wait between where we are and where we aspire to get to can be a rollercoaster ride. Sometimes, it’s exhilarating, other times, it’s exhausting.

It can be frustrating to wait, especially when you do not know how long you have to wait.

We might think waiting is a passive activity but on the contrary, a lot happens during the wait.

The seed doesn’t just germinate, many biological processes occur first. The wait always serves a purpose. It produces character; it shows us what we’re made of. It is in the wait that we are moulded.

You don’t get moulded in the spotlight. You are moulded behind the scenes. It takes a lot of spirit to wait and wait well.

The magnitude of your greatness might influence your wait. The Chinese Bamboo does not sprout as fast as a Papaya tree. The taller a tree, the deeper its roots; the taller a building, the deeper and more solid its foundation.

As you wait, develop roots. Groom yourself, hone your skills, develop character and endurance, expand your network, build your confidence, and invest in knowledge and your health. Keep moving on your path; the one that is mapped out for you.

You will be tempted to take detours or shorter routes to get to your destination but that might only end up complicating your journey. There are no shortcuts to success. You must put in the work and pay the price.

Beware of defeatists. They never have any good thing to say. They aren’t “doing” and they set out to discourage those who are “doing”. Find your support system, this might just be one or two persons, and allow them to pour into you. No one makes it far alone.

As you wait, something is birthed in you. Something you never knew was in you all along and you’ll see, there’s always a purpose for the wait.