A Time of Waiting – by Helen Lescheid

“But those who wait upon 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.”  Isaiah 40:31(KJV).

How do you respond to a prolonged time of waiting?

Waiting for the house to sell, waiting for your children to call, waiting for improved health…

Most of us find waiting hard. We consider it a waste of time. Yet waiting is a part of life.

“Don’t wait for God’s plan to unfold; God’s plan is happening now. The journey is part of the plan,” writes Oswald Chambers.

All of God’s heroes experienced long waiting periods. Abraham went through thirteen year of silence before the fulfillment of a promise from God. His son Isaac waited twenty years for Rebecca to have children. Moses’ vision of delivering his people from Egyptian bondage lay buried for forty years in the desert. Those years of silence were a time of discipline, not displeasure. They experienced the promise after a time of waiting.

How can we make waiting more enjoyable?

I received an interesting lesson at the airport one day. When we learned our plane would be delayed, some of the passengers complained bitterly to the stewardess and worried that they would now miss their connecting flight. Another group of passengers, however, gathered in a group and began to play cards, laughing uproariously at times. They turned their waiting into a time of pleasure.

I learned that waiting is not passivity—doing nothing. While you wait commit yourself and this time to your faithful Creator and continue to do good. Carry on with normal activities. Keep working the soil, planting , watering, and weeding in anticipation of the harvest. Keep hope alive by focusing on Scripture promises of God’s faithfulness.

‘Patient waiting is often the highest way of doing God’s will’, writes, Bishop Collier of the 17th Century.

Faith in God, even when that faith does not seem to be rewarded, makes it into God’s hall of fame. In Upon His Blindness, John Milton writes: “They also serve who only stand and wait.”

God is present in our waiting. When we leave the whole thing to Him, it is uncertain how He will come in, but He will come.

Thank you, Father, that you are present in our waiting. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him Isaiah 30:18

By Helen Lescheid
Used by Permission

Further Reading

•  Waiting on God – How Do We wait? 

• Prayerful Waiting

• The Waiting Side of Faith

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