Waiting for God

In my devotions the last few days I have been reading through the book of Luke and these few thoughts from chapter 2 grabbed my attention. In verses 25-32 we are introduced to a man named Simeon; he was a follower of God who had been told by the Holy Spirit that he would see the Savior. He waited with great anticipation for this promise to be fulfilled, but not only did he wait, these verses tell us that he was righteous, devout and the Holy Spirit was on him. As he listened to the Spirit he was led to the temple when Mary and Joseph brought Jesus there to be dedicated to the Lord, and he not only saw Jesus, he held and praised him. Now, I know that God keeping his word to Simeon is not that amazing because God always keeps his word. What I find interesting was the attitude and actions of Simeon. He not only waited for the promise to be kept, he positioned himself to be ready for it. This was my take away. I can acknowledge and claim all kinds of promises from scripture and God will always keep his word, but I think I miss some of them because I am in the wrong place, I have not listened to the Holy Spirit and moved in the direction he is pushing me, so I miss out. It is never God’s fault that I miss out; it is always mine. Maintaining a close relationship with him should be my priority, so that when He wants to direct and speak to me I am prepared to listen and move.
How about you? Are you like Simeon devoutly waiting and listening to the Holy Spirit?

-Pastor Tim