Julian and the long wait

Today is the day when churches remember Julian of Norwich, a 14th century recluse who had a series of visions whilst seriously ill. She spent the next 20 years reflecting about their meaning before writing of her experiences, in a book that was the first to be penned by a woman in the English language. Twenty years is a long time to take in working out what these experiences meant - what God was saying. Its a long time in our day - but in Julian's when the average life span must have been around 35 years and when the Black Death was wiping people out - twenty years was 2/3 of a lifetime.
It raises the question - 'What if I only understand what God is saying to me, many years from now ?' 'What if the worth or value of this time only becomes apparent a long time in the future. Have I got the patience for that - have I got the nerve to believe that a sabbatical might only begin a process that becomes clear a long time ahead. And what about the church in the current climate - What if the worth of someone's ministry is only apparent long after they're gone ? What if God is speaking but in a way that means we will have to hold our nerve and not get spooked by the long wait that is necessary for us discern and understand ?