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WAITING

Aaron Rodgers officially entered the National Football League to a standing ovation, with hundreds of fans chanting his name. Rodgers admitted he waited longer than he would have liked to be drafted, but says the wait was worth it when he was drafted 24th by the Green Bay Packers in the 2005 NFL Draft.

In the two weeks before the draft, most observers thought Rodgers and another quarterback Alex Smith would be the top two picks in the draft. As the date grew closer, Rodgers talked with teams holding top ten draft picks and began to realize he might not be picked in one of the prestigious top positions. By the time the Packers' 24th pick came up, all of the other prospects waiting with Rodgers in the Green Room at the draft site were gone.

Rodgers said the crowd's cheers when they called his name meant a lot to him. He added he is excited about going to Green Bay where he will likely be the heir apparent to 35-year-old Brett Favre, who has been talking about retirement for the past two seasons. Rodgers said, "I'm excited to go up to Green Bay and learn from the greatest quarterback in the league right now and probably a first-ballot Hall of Famer, by far." Asked about the long wait to be chosen Rodgers said, "It wasn't the easiest thing to go through what I went through."

—Associated Press, April 23, 2005, Rodger's Free Fall Ends with Packers at No. 24. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

No one knows where Aaron Rodger's career will go at this point, but being willing to wait has given him the opportunity to learn from one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL today.

Isaiah 40:31 NASB "Yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary."

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WAITING

Every year the average driver spends the equivalent of nearly two days waiting in traffic jams. The annual report by the transportation institute at Texas A&M University found the longest waits in Los Angeles, where motorist spend 93 hours a year in traffic tie-ups. Washington DC was second, with an average wait of 67 hours, with 57 hours in New York City. The average yearly traffic wait nationwide was 46 hours.

The survey reported that traffic delays had more than doubled since the 1980s as more vehicles pack an aging highway system in many growing metropolitan areas. The study calculated the financial cost of traffic congestion measured by wasted fuel and lost productivity to be more than 63 billion dollars. The average cost per motorist was $829 each year.

—Reuters, It's a Bumper-to-Bumper Life, September 7, 2004. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

Studies like this tell us how much time and money is wasted waiting in traffic. But waiting on the Lord's timing in our lives may not be so unproductive.

Isaiah 40:31 (NIV) "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."