Chez Francois

When I was young, I spent my summers in northern Virginia with my grandparents and my aunt. Every so often, they would go to a magical, mysterious place called Chez Francois. It was (is) a restaurant on the outskirts of D.C., but it was so much more than that.

It was a place I was not allowed to visit.

Per my family, of course. They said I wouldn't appreciate it. From the way they described how fancy it was, I pictured a very modern dining room with giant glass window overlooking the mountains. (Note: There are zero mountains in the suburbs of D.C.) People ate fancy things like snails and caviar and drank wine. I can't picture my grandparents drinking wine, but it may have happened. I don't know! I wasn't allowed to go!

After my husband and I were married, we went to visit my aunt and my grandfather for Thanksgiving (my grandmother had passed away a few years earlier). They suggested we have our Thanksgiving dinner at Chez Francois.

What? Me? Go to Chez Francois? But I'm just a kid! I won't appreciate it!

Oh—wait. I was 26 by then. So we went!

L'Auberge Chez Francois

Turns out that L'Auberge Chez Francois is a little restaurant that looks like an inn, and it's nestled in the woods along a winding road. The entrees are very expensive, but they are very delicious. I ordered a dish with pork and apples (which seems to be my standard whenever I eat at a pricey restaurant. Pork and apples are fancy to me? I don't know). My husband and I ordered hot mulled wine. And Francois himself was eating dinner with his family a few tables over! He ordered champagne for the whole room and did a Thanksgiving toast. It was a wonderful experience.

And you know what? My family was right: I would not have appreciated a place like Chez Francois when I was younger. I wouldn't have appreciated the ambiance or the food—or the price tag. They were right to make me wait until I was old enough to appreciate it.

There are lots of Bible verses that talk about God's timing. He doesn't do anything, reveal anything, until the time is right in his eyes. And that could depend on many things, especially when it comes to us. When we ask God to do things for us or show us something, he can say yes, he can say no, or sometimes he says, "Grow." We need a little more time to mature, to understand and prepare our hearts for that stage in our life. If God revealed something before we were ready, we may not understand it or appreciate it.

We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. May your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD, even as we put our hope in you. - Psalm 33:20-22

God's love is unfailing whether we're waiting for him to answer us or not. We have to trust that he has our best interests at heart, even if that means not getting the answer we want exactly when we want it. And that's so hard. It's so hard to wait. Especially when what's waiting for us is so amazing! But, sometimes, we need more time to appreciate it. Like Chez Francois.

Have you had a "Chez Francois" moment with God? What did he reveal that was worth the wait?