Waiting is Work!
Playing a Fish by Winslow Homer
When you first look at this painting you see stillness. You see a man sitting in his canoe in the middle of a lake surrounded by forest and mountains in the distance. The man and canoe almost seem like a silhouette.
But as your eyes adjust you see he is dressed for fishing and he has two things in his hands. In his right hand, he holds his pole steady. The line is taut. The fact that his left hand has the net in the water tells you that he's trying to haul in a fish on his line. So although the man in his canoe seems calm and still he is actually steadily working.
Waiting is hard work and it's an art. If he jerks the line too soon he's likely to lose the fish. If he doesn't hold steady he won't get the fish in the net.
This picture illustrates an important principle. While we go about our daily affairs we are always to be listening for the footsteps of God. We are to be active in our day to day lives but always with an ear cocked to what God might be saying, usually through people or circumstances.
We are to live our lives while we actively wait on God.
"Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and your renown are the desire of our hearts." Isaiah 26:8