"What's Taking Him So Long?" by Carl McRoy

What’s taking him so long they ask,

Scoffers taking me to task.

Where’s the sign of his second coming,

The promised supernatural global warming?

There’s always been wars, famines, quakes and disease,

So lay off the apocalyptic nonsense please.

You point to His return with every little event,

Yet we’re still here, can’t you take a hint?

 

Even if there’s a god way up yonder,

Is he really worth worship I wonder?

Are you sure he really cares?

Or is he just too weak to dare,

To intervene in Syria,

Umpqua, Charleston, or Nigeria?

Your pie in the sky fantasies,

Golden harps and eternal ease,

Still smoking the opiate of the people.

Aren’t you tired of gettin’ high at the steeple?

 

How do I answer these accusations?

And why my hesitation?

Why don’t I have a ready answer,

For a question as old as cancer?

It pierces like a pitchfork prong,

What’s taking him so long?

A question asked in Peter’s day and ever since,

He said they asked out of preferred ignorance.

It’s not that there’s no evidence collected,

They just don’t want their hearts inspected.

But what about the question I must confess,

That burns within my own chest.

What is taking Him so long?

 

Sounds almost like their song.

But it’s sung to a different tune,

Because I’ve been looking for Him soon.

Soon, but years I never thought I’d see continue to pass,

Soon, but anxious, hopeful saints now fertilize the grass.

Where indeed is the sign of His glorious appearing?

How can I know His return is nearing?

What else can He possibly be waiting for?

A greater famine, quake, or war?

Aha, how could I be so dumb?

He’s waiting for the Antichrist to come!

But now, that sounds like Jesus is on Satan’s schedule,

That would mean the devil rules and God’s his tool,

For he would have power to delay,

The date of his own judgment day!

 

I don’t want to be classed with skeptics and scoffers,

I want to be faithful and claim all that the gospel offers.

But this mystery has me intense,

How long must we remain in suspense?

Let me go straight to the source,

Maybe the Lord will show me His course.

What’s taking you so long?

What’s taking you so long?

Is, is there an echo in here?

 

Kinda, but don’t fear,

I’ve been trying to get your attention,

Now let me ease your apprehension.

Just as I did with my servant Job,

When he called Me to probe,

Wanting find out what was happening

Get understanding from behind the scene.

Remember how I answered his inquiry?

Yeah, and I’m still a God of mystery.

 

You haven’t the capacity to understand,

All that I hold in My hand.

The angels don’t even know the day or hour

So don’t let your countenance sour.

The signs you point to are the beginning of sorrow,

Not the evidence that I’m coming tomorrow.

To be saved you must endure til then,

Although you’ll never be sure when.

What’s taking Me so long you want to know?

Your voice is the one that’s the true echo?

I’ve been asking you for years,

Pleading your case with countless tears.

What’s taking you so long to repent?

What’s taking so long to go where you’re sent?

 

Like Jonah awaiting Ninevah’s demise,

You’re in for a big surprise,

Because while you’re waiting for fire to fall,

I’m waiting for the gospel as a witness to all.

You’re waiting for brimstone and retribution,

I’m waiting to be lifted up as sin’s only solution.

You can’t wait for sinners to feel my wrath,

I’m waiting for you to do some math,

For I’ve prepared a palace with grand dimensions,

It’s size is beyond your comprehension.

New Jerusalem’s borders cover half of the U.S.

And it’s 255 times taller than Mt. Everest,

And all this space is to be utilized,

By those for whom I was crucified.

New York and Tokyo are measured by the millions,

Citizens of New Jerusalem will be in the billions.

 

Some of those to be saved still need to repent,

That’s why you’ve been equipped with the gospel and sent.

My longsuffering is the reason for my delay,

But your tongue and keyboard can hasten the day.

So the next time you wonder when you’ll see Me in the sky,

Just go to the mirror and look yourself in the eye,

Is there some sin I need my Savior to expel?

Have I overlooked chances to share the gospel?

Answering questions with questions like only the Lord can,

It’s time to gird up my loins and be a man,

For now I must change the theme of my song,

From what’s taking Him, to what’s taking me so long?