As God continues to hold my hand through this waiting period of life, I have been blessed along the way through the experiences that God is blessing me with. I had the opportunity to present a devotional on “Waiting on the Lord” to the ladies fellowship at my Church and was able to pull from all the lessons I’ve learned to date on waiting.
Though waiting on the Lord can be challenging because we live in a society that is groomed to expect an immediate response to just about everything – especially when it comes to technology – there can be immense blessings realized through total reliance on our Heavenly Father for our needs.
While we’re waiting, here are some things to keep us busy,
1) God does hear us, so we can talk to Him.
a. Psalm 116:1; I love the Lord, for he heard by voice; he heard my cry for mercy.
2) God can be trusted, so we can trust Him
a. And they that know your name will put their trust in you: for you, LORD, have not forsaken them that seek you. (Psalms 9:10)
3) God is worthy of our praise in any circumstance, so we should praise Him
a. Rev 4:11, You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power.
4) God is provides all our needs, so we should thank Him
a. When we praise and thank God for what He’s done our thoughts will be diverted off our situation and onto God’s provision
b. Philippians 4:19, And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
5) God is working everything for our good, so we need to wait and watch for Him to be glorified
a. Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.
6) We should seek out what God is teaching us in this waiting
7) We ought to focus on God’s promises
a. Examine & manage your thoughts/perspective
8) We should meditate daily on God’s Word and replace impatient, negative thoughts with God’s truth
9) Pray, pray, pray – express to God how you feel. Prayer is a demonstration of our reliance upon a Sovereign God
a. When everything is going as you want the need to rely on God seems minimal compared to a situation where you feel helpless and God is the only solution to your situation. You will find as you commune with God, crying out to Him, praying to Him, that you know Him more.
b. You will become stronger each time you come to Him.
c. Enlist others to pray with and for you.
10) When you worry, you do not trust your Heavenly Father. That means you don't know Him well enough.
11) Examine if your petition(s)/what you’re waiting on is consistent with the Word of God. Pray God’s Word back to Him in your prayers.
12) Examine the condition of your heart and confess unrepentant sins
a. Psalm 66:16-20
i. If I had Cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. But truly God has listened: he has attended to the voice of my prayer.
13) Study the lives of those who waited & struggled with waiting (e.g., Job, David, Abraham, Sarah)
14) Examine God’s track record in your life
a. If you have any question about the future, look at the past. Did He sustain you then? Don't worry--He will sustain you in the future as well.
15) Focus on the gift of TODAY
God gives you the glorious gift of life today; live in the light and full joy of that day, using the resources God supplies. Don't push yourself into the future and forfeit the day's joy over an anticipated tomorrow that may never happen. Today is all you really have, for God permits none of us to live in tomorrow until it turns into today.
God knows exactly what we stand in need of. Waiting on the Lord is not a sign on God’s inactivity in your life. As we wait on God and He molds and shapes us inwardly through our prayers, meditation, and examination of our relationship with Him, God will drive us to rely upon Him for our every need until He outwardly glorifies Himself through us in answered prayer.
