My husband
likes to tally up how much time we spend in our lifetimes waiting at red
lights, standing in grocery store lines, or waiting for the internet browser to
pop up on our computer screens. He can predict nearly the exact time we will
arrive somewhere before we even get started and be correct almost to the minute,
even on long trips! He can tell you how long we wait for practically everything
we do. He loves to calculate those kinds of things. He even tries to get the
rest of us in the family to play along in his calculations, but I do not like
those kinds of waiting games. I figure that guessing is not going to change the
arrival time or the experience of my waiting. I’m not really good at waiting in
general. I’m trying to do better.
As human beings, we are always waiting. We
wait in line in a store, we wait for our paychecks to be deposited, we wait for
our favorite TV show to come on, for our loved ones to arrive home safely, for
medical test results to come back, for the sun to come out, for the rain to
stop, for our kids to be born, to grow up, and then we wish they were young
again, we wait for more things than I could possibly list on this page. Wait,
wait, and wait.
I have been
thinking a lot more lately about waiting. I find myself in a season of waiting
right now, and I have to say, it is not easy to wait. In fact, it is pretty
challenging. As I wait, my mind goes to many different places, not all of them
pleasant. Sometimes I wait patiently and with courage, but at other times,
waiting causes me to fear, worry and to be very anxious. But, there is a better
way to wait and I deeply desire to wait in that way. Scripture teaches us to
wait on the Lord. I have been pondering what waiting on the Lord looks like.
How should I feel as I wait? How should I behave?
I believe
that Scripture teaches that we should wait with faith, confidence, trust and
hope. We are to wait on God with patience. We are to wait, knowing that He hears
us and will answer us and wait with confidence that God is Who He says He is. A
new friend (actually one of my doctors) shared something with me recently while
trying to encourage me during a phone call that I received from her. She said
we are to wait on God with “confident expectation”. I love that! It is so
practical and so true! She took about twenty five minutes of her very busy time
to encourage me with these wise words. How often does that happen these days? I’m
so thankful for her. (and for others)
Waiting is not easy, nor passive.
Waiting on the Lord should be active. As we wait, we can talk to Him and trust
that He hears us. We can read and study His Word. We can listen and we can seek the wisdom of
those wiser than us who can walk with us as we wait and help to point us to Him.
This kind of waiting is much better than the kind that leads to fear and
anxiety. I’m not saying it is easy, but it is well worth it. I am preaching to
myself here more than anyone else. Trust me, I need to hear this right now. As
we wait, we can also remember God’s faithfulness to us in the past. As I
contemplate His faithfulness, I am overwhelmed by His goodness and mercy
towards me. Remembering His faithfulness also leads me to be thankful, thankful
that I do not wait alone and thankful that I know that whatever the results of
my waiting turn out to be, He is with me. He goes before me.
If you also
find yourself in a time of waiting, please look with me at the verses that God
has been giving me in this tough season of waiting. Spend time in His Word and
look for other verses that may encourage you as you wait. (I’d love for you to
share your favorite verses in the comment section below!) God bless you as you
wait. I pray that as we wait together on the Lord, we will find strength,
peace, patience, comfort and hope, and even more than that, let’s wait together
with “confident expectation”.
Isaiah 40:31 – “but they
who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with
wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not
faint.” (ESV)
Psalm 27:14 – “Wait for
the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” (ESV)
Psalm 130:5 – “I wait for
the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope. My soul waits for the
Lord.” (NIV)
Philippians 4:4-8 – “Rejoice
in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident
to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything,
by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And
the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts
and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Finally, brothers,
whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure,
whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think
about such things.” (NIV)
Psalm 25:4-5 – “Make me
to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach
me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long.”
Psalm 46:10 – “Be still
and know that I am God…” (NIV) “Cease striving and know that I am God…” (NASB)
Titus 2:13 – “…waiting
for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior
Jesus Christ…”
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