“Hurry up; we’re going to be late!” My words hit my ears with conviction as I hastily tie Hannah’s soccer cleat. I had resolved some time ago to try and abstain from those words—hurry up. But now is not the time to ponder this. I pick up Judah to bring him to the car and my hands soak into his wet pants. Frustration wells up—another reminder of my impatience and failed attempt to potty train quickly. The last few weeks had been dominated by my desire to get this little boy potty trained, and things were not going as planned.
“Judah, you must go potty in the toilet!” I remind him as though it would make a difference. “OK, Mommy,” he says somewhat uncertainly. I try to cover my annoyance, but I’m sure it seeps through my pores. I strip his pants and reach for a pull-up. Now we’re really going to be late.
Have you ever realized how much we rush around in life? This is especially true when we have children, and our timelines don’t line up with their childish ways. Whether it be something small like potty training a two-year-old or trying to get the next promotion, we value progress. We like to check things off the box and move to the next thing. To feel success at finishing tasks. Setbacks and hindrances provide great tests to our character—and if we are willing, sanctification is the result.
In my life, I have often valued progress over process. The result? Frustration, disappointment, and feelings of failure. Being increasingly aware of this recently, I have marveled at how much God values process. He is not anxious to get to the next level, to rush onto the next thing, impatient with the slowness of his people. He made us, after all, not as robots, but as creatures, with limitations and weaknesses.
When we look at the creation story, we see a glimpse of God’s value in taking time for the process. He could have created all things with one word, yet he went through each category, making them intricately and intimately. And then, he took time to rest, enjoying his creation and recognizing his good work. God took time for the process.
It has also struck me quite often how many lengthy periods of waiting there are in the Bible. Whether it be a promise from God waiting to be fulfilled, enduring corruption and evil, or just decades of seemingly wasted time—God’s timetable often seems delayed. Between the Old Testament and New Testament is a period of 400 years in which God was silent and no Scripture was written. This “waste of time” would seem unthinkable to anyone trying to accomplish things. What was God doing during this time? What was its purpose? Only God knows.
God could force things and make them happen, but he is patient, not wanting anyone to perish (2 Peter 3:9). He knows human weakness and is willing to let things unfold in an untimely manner. Think about the ten plagues. God could’ve put the last plague first and yanked his people out of Pharaoh’s grasp in one move, and yet it is the process of the plagues that demonstrates his great power and, in the meantime, builds the faith of his people—as well as some of the Egyptians. God exposes his purpose in delay in his words to Pharoah, “For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth” (Exodus 9:15-16 ESV). God could have rescued his people in a moment, but he allowed the process of the plagues to show his power and glory.
We don’t know all the reasons why God emphasizes the process, but we do know that he is after our hearts. He knows we are stubborn and naturally choose our own way. So, in character, he patiently pursues us, directs us, and leads us in the way we should take. He is patient with us so that every person is given opportunities to receive his grace.
This blog has been a process. I wrote it almost two months ago and am only now getting it posted. But it’s still relevant. The potty training is still in process, but we are making progress! And the patience and perspective developed in this time has been worth it. I’m seeing the opportunities for grace and love—for connecting to my little boy, letting him be him, and not comparing him to the other three children.
What a peace we often forfeit when we strive to make things happen in our time and not trust God with the process. And what joy do we experience when we surrender our need for progress and entrust the results and timing to God. God, who began the good work in you and in me, will be faithful to complete it—but we must be willing to embrace the process to find progress.