When God Says “Wait”

You’re sitting at a stop light.

Waiting.

You’re laying in a hospital bed.

Waiting.

You’re looking out of the window.

Waiting.

You’re praying and praying but you just keep…

Waiting.
 

Can you relate? Do you feel like you are waiting on God? Waiting on God to answer your prayer, waiting on His timing. Well, you are in good company. All throughout the bible, people waited. God could have given Sarah a child the first month of trying to get pregnant, however God let 39 years pass before she became pregnant. God could have made David king the day he was anointed, however God made him wait 15 years. God could have led Moses to the promised land in 40 days, however, God made him wait 40 years. God could have let Joseph get out of prison after a year, however, Joseph was in prison for 10 years. God could have healed Lazarus before he died, however God raised him from the dead.

God could have done all of these things quicker. God could have answered these prayers within seconds, however He didn’t. They waited.

And, oftentimes, God makes us wait. We pray, and pray and pray. Yet, we wait. We battle diseases for years with no sign of recovery. We watch loved ones suffer with no end in sight. We apply for job after job without any interviews. We wait for babies for months only to be let down again. We wait.

Prayers like this bring us to tears and leave us wondering if God really even hears us. We feel like we have good intentions and wonder why God is making us wait. Why is he putting us through this pain? Why is he making us go through this? Why?

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” – James 1:2-4

Maybe God has you right where He wants you for a reason. Maybe He is building your faith. Maybe He is strengthening your dependance on Him. We don’t always know the “why” until we are through the waiting and sometimes, even not then.

But, don’t be discouraged friends. God has a reason and a purpose. He is bigger than all of our prayers and hears each one. Better yet, he knew our prayer before we even prayed them and he already knew how he would answer them. Let that be encouraging to you. The God of the universe holds you in His hand. And you are not alone.

I think almost everyone has gone through a time of waiting in their life. Lately, it seems like God has had our little family in a season of waiting. And, I will be the first to raise my hand and say that is hard. It is hard to be patient. It is hard to not want to skip ahead. But, we are choosing patience and to trust in God’s timing.

“Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” – Psalm 27:14