In Memory of

Leona Ruth Olin

" Wait and You Will See Him "

Desperately, helplessly, longingly, I cried:

Quietly, patiently, lovingly God replied.

I pled and I wept for a clue to my fate,

And the Master so gently said, "Child you must wait."

"Wait? You say 'wait,' "my indignant reply.

"Lord, I need answers. I need to know why!

Is your hand shortened ? Or have you not heard ?

By faith I have asked and am claiming Your Word.

My future and all to which I relate

Hangs in the balance, and You tell me 'Wait' ?

I'm needing a 'yes,' a go-ahead sign,

Or even a 'no' to which I can resign.

And, Lord, You promised that if we believe

We need but to ask, and we shall receive.

And, Lord, I've been asking! I need a reply!"

"Lord, I need answers. I need to know why!

Then quietly, softly, I learned of my fate

As my Master replied once again, "You must wait."

So I slumped in my chair, defeated and taut,

And grumbled to God, "So I'm waiting... for what ?"

He seemed, then, to kneel, and His eyes wept with mine,

And He tenderly said," I could give you a sign.

I could shake the heavens and darken the sun.

I could raise the dead, cause the mountains to run.

All you seek, I could give, and pleased you would be.

You would have what you want...but you wouldn't know Me.

You'd not know the depth of my love for each saint;

You'd not know the power that I give to the faint;

You'd not learn to see through clouds of despair;

You'd not learn to trust just by knowing I'm there;

You'd not know the joy of resting in Me

When darkness and silence were all you could see.

You'd never experience the fullness of love

As the peace of My spirit descends like a dove;

You'd know that I give and I save ( for a start ),

But you'd not know the depth of the beat of My heart,

The glow of My comfort late in the night,

The faith that I give when you walk without sight,

The depth that's beyond getting just what you asked

Of an infinite God, who makes what you have last.

You'd never know, should your pain quickly flee,

What it means that "My grace is sufficient for thee."

Yes, your dreams for that loved one overnight would come true,

But, Oh, the loss! if I lost what I am doing in you!

So be silent, My child, and in time you will see

That the greatest gifts is to get to know Me.

And though oft may My answers seem terribly late,

My most precious answer of all is still, "Wait."

This poem was written by a missionary after a 2- month illness.

The author wishes to remain anonymous in order that God

get all the glory, as he says it was God who gave it to him.