Over the weekend I celebrated a friend’s birthday by attending a pottery painting party at a local studio with our circle of friends.

We had two hours to choose a piece of greenware—clay that has been shaped, but not fired yet—and paint it any way we desired.

We laughed, ate the most fabulous cupcakes and celebrated our friend while we added colorful designs to our pieces. I chose to paint a tall mug for tea. I painted the base an aqua color, then added fun polka dots in several different colors. I really liked the way it turned out once I stopped stressing about how to paint it.

Once our pottery party came to an end, we cleaned up and left our pieces behind so they could be glazed, then fired in the kiln. That step is essential to strengthen the fragile clay into ceramic, which allows it to be used for the designed purpose. Without the heat and firing, the clay would fall apart.

As we left and went to lunch to continue the birthday celebration, we talked about how our painted designs would turn out. The one phrase I heard over and over was, “I can’t wait…”

Waiting a week for a mug to be fired isn’t that big of a deal. But there are times when we wallow in seasons of waiting that seem to linger forever. We can become easily frustrated, weary and discouraged, especially if you’ve been yearning for something for so long.

Believe it or not, though, but there is joy in the waiting. Unfortunately many of us can’t see it while we’re going through that season, but hindsight shows us the blessings.

Here are a few lessons we can learn from waiting:

• Keep your eye on the prize, not on how slow you think things are going.
• Realize waiting is all part of it. Just like the greenware needs to be fired to become stronger, waiting tempers us to grow stronger in our faith.
• Enjoy the season. There will be a day when things will be moving too fast for you to enjoy the greenware stage.
• Remember—it’s all good. Waiting shapes our faith, strengthens our patience and refines our humility. We need to trust in the One who has a plan and a purpose for all of us.