Most of us hate it. There are very few people who enjoy waiting. The closest I’ve found to good “waiters” are some farmers I’ve known who understand the laws of the harvest. They work incredibly hard but realize they can’t rush the ingathering. It will come in due time.
Our instant world doesn’t help. Everything has sped up. Instant news coverage, instant fast food, instant answers on the internet. We don’t even have to get dressed and go to the store. We can order immediately in our pajamas with the click of a button. We are in love with instant, and it makes waiting harder.
MATURITY BREEDS PATIENCE
I waited patiently for the Lord and He inclined to me and heard my cry. (Psalm 40:1)
Over time, godly men and women have come to see that the Lord is never in a hurry but always on time. There are things that God accomplishes through time that cannot be done any faster. God molds us during seasons of waiting. He brings us to dependence. His promises become real and His presence precious. And God is preparing outcomes that are stunning … if we will wait.
Spiritual waiting is not a mindless, passive exercise. If you see it that way, you will become restless, worried, and bothered.
A seasoned believer knows that they are waiting not merely for something but for Someone. “I waited patiently for the Lord,” the Psalmist said. He had turned his trust heavenward and was content to leave the timing in God’s sovereign hands. Waiting in an exercise in dependency upon God Himself.
How blessed is the man who has made the LORD his trust. (Psalm 40:4)
An excellent spiritual waiter is like a veteran waiter in a fine restaurant. He stands at attention, actively looking toward those he serves. He is ready to move at the slightest indication of need. He does not rush the patron but waits well and moves when necessary—not too early or too late.
When faced with a need, we must go to the Lord and rest it in His hands. Then, we wait for Him aggressively. If He tells us to do something, we don’t delay. We respond with glad surrender and humble obedience. But, if He asks us to simply wait on Him, we do it gladly because we trust Him to lead, not ourselves, our circumstances, or others.
THE FOUNDATION FOR OUR WAITING
The Psalmist waited because He believed two amazing truths about God. We can wait patiently when we believe and confess these same understandings about God.
“I Believe in Your POWER!”
Many, O Lord are the wonders which You have done. (Psalm 40:5a)
A good spiritual waiter knows that God has the power to do anything. He can do “exceedingly, abundantly beyond all we can ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20). Because we believe in His power, we know we are in capable hands as we wait on Him.
“I Believe in Your Continual CARE!”
And Your thoughts toward us, there is none to compare with You. If I would declare and speak of them, they would be too numerous to count! (Vs. 5)
You, O LORD, will not withhold Your compassion from me. Your lovingkindness and Your truth will continually preserve Me. (Vs. 11)
The Lord has His eye on His children, just as you continually think of your kids. Good parents anticipate their children's needs and provide them with precise timing. How much more will the One who is perfect in love take thought and care of His own?
Most of us believe Satan’s lie that God could care less about us. What a humbling, awe-inspiring realization that His thoughts toward us are “too numerous to count!”
We know God will do what is driven by lovingkindness and also truth. Truth drives God to give us exactly what we need, lovingkindness when we need it. Spurgeon said, “God is too good to be unkind and too wise to be mistaken. When we cannot trace His hand, we can always trust His heart.”
Father, I believe in Your power! My need is small in comparison to Your ability, but important. I know that You can and will deliver me with the might of Your omnipotent hands. And I believe in Your care for me. I’m overwhelmed that your eyes are on me! That You are thinking of me all the time! I need not worry. You’re missing nothing as I patiently wait on You. You will redeem, You will deliver, You will provide with perfect provision for me. So today, I chose to wait, not on something, but Someone. I wait on You with patient joy.
