βWait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lordβ (Psalm 27:14).
The half-joking prayer, βLord, I need patience, and I need it RIGHT NOW,β isnβt too far removed from how we approach matters of spiritual growth and living out the will of God in our life. Life is full of waiting: waiting for your phone to charge; waiting in line at the grocery store; waiting in a traffic jam; waiting for a job; waiting for the right spouse; waiting for test results.
The culture we live in is one that doesnβt like to wait. We like instant and fast everythingβinstant downloads, instant messaging, instant coffee, instant prints, fast-food restaurants, faster internet, fast phones. However, there are many times along our journey through life when God says, βWait here.β And what looks like 15 minutes turns out to be 15 months, or even 15 years.
The Bible provides numerous examples of people who waited on the Lord. Abraham waited for decades to have the son that God promised him. Joseph had to wait in prison. Moses waited for 40 years on the backside of the desert, tending sheep, before leading the children of Israel out of captivity in Egypt. The Israelites then had to wait 40 years to enter the Promised Land. Simeon waited for the birth of the Messiah. Paul waited during his time of preparation in Arabia.
Waiting is a part of Godβs plan and purpose in our lives, and resisting Godβs timing and trying to get ahead of the Lord can have serious consequences. Abraham and Sarah found this out when they ran ahead of God, with Hagar bearing Ishmael instead of waiting on Godβs promise (Gen. 16).
God works while His people are waiting. Time is not wasted in Godβs waiting room. Waiting on the Lord renews our strength (Isa. 40:31). God often uses these times of waiting to prepare us for what lies ahead. Oswald Chambers writes, βWe are apt to think that everything that happens to us is to be turned into useful teachingβ¦We shall find that the spheres God brings us into are not meant to teach us something but to make us something.β In those waiting times, God both teaches and makes us something; in us He cultivates patience, Christlike character, and hope as we trust Him through those times. As we read in Romans 5:3-5a,
βAnd not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope: and hope maketh not ashamed.β source
