This morning I had cause to ring my local GP surgery to arrange a home visit for a lady in our village. It was interesting being on the “other side” of the doctor-patient relationship. I rang the patient telephone number and a cheerful recorded voice, (of one of my former colleagues) gave various options for medical attention, asked me to wait in the queue, and then the ubiquitous piped music started up. This was punctuated by another cheerful voice telling me I was number 30 in the queue.
It was at this point that I decided to put the phone on speaker, and make myself some breakfast. Soon I was number 26, number 19, number 16, number 9……. I hadn’t finished my bowl of muesli before the calm and friendly voice of the receptionist asked what she could do for me.
What is your reaction when you get a recorded voice saying, “you are in a queue and will be answered as soon as possible, please continue to hold, your call is very important to us”?
From feedback we had when I was working at the surgery was that callers wanted to know where they were in the queue.
What would your reaction be when you find out you are number 30 in the queue?
It might depend on your reason for calling. You might like me wait and see how fast you move up the queue.
In our faith we are asked to hold on, our call is important to God. We don’t have the luxury of knowing where we are in the queue, but we do know that our call will be answered – but not necessarily in the timing or the way we would like or expect.
Isaiah 55:8-9 says “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
Just as we trust our GPs and nurses with our health, so we trust in a God who knows our ways and our thoughts before we have even called Him
Prayer: Heavenly Father, help us to wait patiently and trust in your timing and not our own, to have confidence in your answer to our prayers. AMEN