WORTH THE WAIT

(Post by: Colton)

Benjamin William Hastings has a song called “Saturday” with Aodhán King. It’s one of those songs that lingers with you long after it’s over. It reflects on the Saturday between Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection, the day that seemed silent, hopeless, and empty.

The song says, “It’s hard on the first, and we cheer on the third, but most life is lived on the second.”

Isn’t that true? Most of us don’t live on Good Friday or Resurrection Sunday. We live in the Saturday between them.

In the waiting. In the worry. In the trembling. In the wondering if you’re next. In the diagnosis, the planning, and trying to figure out what to do. That’s where life is lived. More importantly, it’s where faith becomes real.

The song goes on to talk about waiting for something “in the depths of the deep, in the belly of the beast.” In other words, what we often encounter in that season of despair is the “beast,” which is the devil himself, rearing his ugly head. He whispers lies that sound convincing in the silence. He will tell you that you should give up. He may even ask you, “Where’s your God now?”

The song continues:

“If I could just tell you something, it’s wait another, wait another, wait another day. Never know, could be close, could be Saturday.”

Every time I hear those lyrics, I wonder how many people have given up one day too soon.

What if you quit right at the finish line? What if you let the devil convince you to surrender just as God was preparing to move?

We all have that tendency. I know I do. When the going gets tough and you just want to throw in the towel and say, “I’m done.” But the Lord is still working, even when you can’t see Him. Even when heaven feels silent, He’s still moving.

He is worth the wait.

In 2023, my life was flipped completely upside down. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know whether to give up or fight. Whether to trust man or to trust God. I had the enemy telling me I was worthless and that I didn’t deserve to live, and others telling me all hope was lost. I was terrified of what was to come.

Trusting Jesus was the only thing I had.

At the end of the day, no one could walk through that valley for me. Trusting Jesus in that dark tunnel that seemed to never end was all I had.

In John 6:67–68, after many of Jesus’ disciples turned away when following Him became difficult, Jesus asked the Twelve, “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Peter answered, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that You are the Holy One of God.”

I have always loved Peter’s response because it wasn’t, “Everything makes sense.”

It was, “Where else would I go?”

They had nothing but Him. I had nothing but Him.

I have been blessed beyond measure. In seven months, I get to marry my best friend and the love of my life. I have a job I love. Yet even now, I still have nothing.

I have to be completely poor in spirit.

Everything I have is because of Him.

As I sit here in a semi-truck waiting for bridge beams to show up, I can’t help but be overwhelmed by His faithfulness. Looking back, I realize all I had to do was wait another day. I had to get through that Saturday that seemed so still, so quiet, and so lonely.

If I had quit there, I never would have seen what God was preparing on the other side.

The song continues:

“A lot can change in a moment. Could be one grain of faith. Could be two prayers away. Could be three dawns till stones start rolling.”

What “Saturday” are you living through right now? Is it a diagnosis you’re terrified to hear? A phone call you’re hoping never comes? A prayer that feels like it will never be answered?

Don’t give in to the ways of this world. Don’t let fear, or the beast, have the final word.

Because…

“And I’ll bet you’ll look back
When you see it someday
Saying that season sucked
But it wasn’t a waste
All the tears sown in silence
Not a one was in vain
‘Cause you’re holding that promise
Wasn’t it worth the wait?”

One day, every Saturday will be over.

Every prayer will be answered. Every tear will be wiped away.

Until then, Emmanuel, God with us, is enough. He always has been.

And one day, we’ll experience the greatest promise of all: forever in His presence.

So, whether it’s a diagnosis, a sentencing, a death, or a Saturday you can’t seem to escape…

Wait another day.

Hold on a little longer.

Keep trusting.

Because Jesus is worth every tear.

He is worth every Saturday.

He is worth it all.