Our son, Paul is a little more than 6 months away from beginning his career as a vascular surgeon. After 4 years of undergraduate, 4 years of medical school, 5 years of general surgery residency and 2 years of vascular surgery fellowship, he will finally be able to do the work he has been preparing to do for the last 15 years! He and I were talking recently about what a long road it has been and while I have no problem with this length of time and preparation before I would want him to operate on my own heart, I think his description of this journey as “delayed gratification” is a good one! As I thought about this idea of delayed gratification, I realized that this is, so often the price you pay to live out your calling. Just three things I want to share with you today!
#1:
We have seen evidence of delayed gratification in our church in so many ways, recently. At the Downtown campus, we are now enjoying brand new cushions on the prayer benches, lovingly referred to as “Kneelers.” These beautiful, hand-stitched cushions were 6 years in the making! It’s incredible to think about the hundreds of hours that went into the creation of just one cushion. It may have taken 6 years to complete the kneelers, but now they will be used and enjoyed for decades. If you’ve ever worked on a project for multiple years, you know that it might seem like you will never reach your goal. For my son, Paul, it was the passion he had for becoming a surgeon that kept him pressing on toward his goal. He absolutely loves what he does. I think this passion and love is what carries us onward as we work toward our goals and dreams.
#2:
This past Sunday, we celebrated the grand opening of the new St. Luke’s Edmond building. For 2.5 years prior to the building opening, worship was being held at Sequoyah Middle School. Volunteers worked each week to set up and tear down the “worship space” and “kids area.” You can imagine the joy felt on that first Sunday in the beautiful, new building. The building wouldn’t have ever been possible without the hard work and commitment of the people, dedicated to transforming a middle school cafeteria into a sacred worship space! I believe hard work and action are key in propelling us toward our goals. It might not always be easy, but when you work hard and take the appropriate action, it’s impossible to get one step closer to reaching your dream.
#3:
I love the way delayed gratification is defined by Wikipedia as “resisting a smaller but more immediate reward in order to receive a larger or more enduring reward later.” This is especially difficult for us! We live in a world of Amazon Prime’s Next Day shipping and nearly everything we want or need is available on demand. When we feel impatient, it is important to remember that God has a plan for each of our lives. When you and I do the work by taking action and remain dedicated to our passion, we can make strides each day toward the life that God is calling us toward, even when it might seem like it’s taking longer than we think it should!
You will eat the fruit of your labor; blessings and prosperity will be yours.
Psalm 128:2
