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WAITING WOES

MAIN POINT
No one enjoys pain. No one enjoys waiting. Both pain and waiting confuse us as we struggle to understand the will of God. Unfortunately, many people believe that experiencing suffering means being outside the will of God. We need to understand that when we experience bad things it does not mean we are experiencing God's displeasure with us.

CHARACTERIZATION
Karen is a likeable Christian woman. She tends to be the leader in most of her friendships and doesn't complain very often. The past six months have been very difficult for her, yet she has held things together very well. The day this scene takes place is almost a "breaking point" for her (she is not a typical "whiner"). She doesn't want some pat answer for the hardship she faces, yet she knows her friend Marie really does mean well. She will, at some point, tell Marie that her responses were not very helpful ... but not today.

Marie is an energetic and likeable Christian woman. She tends to be a follower and has gone to Karen many times for advice. She and her husband are struggling financially. She is dreading the day when Karen moves, but has been putting that reality out of her mind. Because she often speaks before thinking, she has been caught with her foot in her mouth more than once.

DIRECTOR’S NOTES
Do what you can in the space you have to establish a kitchen setting. It would be nice to have an actual door to enter and exit from, but it isn't necessary.

Karen was really hoping that the people who looked at the house would buy it. She is very "up" until she reads the note. We should see a loss of energy in her, and when she snaps at Marie, ("why don't you buy it?), it wakes her up and she is genuinely sorry. The rest of the scene she is trying not to totally lose it with Marie ... thus the pacing.

Marie should actually begin to eat her lunch and should really have something on her mouth or hands when Karen goes to get her a napkin. You'll have to buy several sandwiches if the sketch is done for multiple services. Be careful that the sound of the food wrappers don't distract from the dialog. Marie really believes she is communicating words of wisdom to Karen .... so we want the audience to like her and at the same time, want to stuff a sock in her mouth.

RELATED SCRIPTURES
The following scriptures link well with this script. Psalm 145:18-19 - The Lord is near and hears our prayers. Hebrews 4:14-16 - We have a high priest who sympathizes with us, and was tempted as we are tempted, come to Him boldly! Proverbs 3:5-6 - Trust in the Lord, not your own (or you friend's) understanding. Isaiah 40:31 - They who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.

RELATED THEMES
This will work well for any message touching on unanswered prayer, the presence of God in the time of trouble, or the difficulty of waiting for things. It would also work well for a message on friendships or understanding God's will for our lives.