Friday, February 24, 2017

Having to Wait


Dear Ladies at Home,

Are you in a season of waiting?  Is there something you have requested from the Lord, maybe again and again, but His answer is not coming...This doesn't necessarily mean no, but often means "Wait".  Should we give up and stop praying about this something that we need or desire?  I don't think so.  I think we should keep asking, as long as our desires are for something good, and as long as our hearts are surrendered to the Lord, knowing that it is His will that will be done and in His perfect timing.  In these seasons of waiting, we must keep trusting in Him.  We also look to Him for our comfort and strength.

Like a little child who asks his parent for something over and over, we may keep petitioning our Father in Heaven for His help in our circumstances.  For Who else may come to our aid but Him?  And like a little child, we keep trusting in our Heavenly Father to do what is best for us, and in His timing.  We do this because we remember His goodness to us in times past.  We know His character.  We know His love for us. We are faulty creatures, but this is the kind of trust we ought to have in God our Father.


There are several Scriptures that tell us to wait on the Lord:
Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.
~Psalm 27:14

Wait on the LORD, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.
~Psalm 37:34

Say not thou, I will recompense evil; but wait on the LORD, and he shall save thee.
~Proverbs 20:22

For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth.
~Psalm 37:9
And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.
~Isaiah 30:18

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
~Isaiah 40:31
I especially like this one:
Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God, until that he have mercy upon us.
~Psalm 123:2
Why does the Lord Have Us Wait?

There are many reasons the Lord would have us wait.  He is holy and righteous and knows all things. While we see only the here and now, and what we think is best, our great God and King knows everything that will come to pass.  We have a very limited knowledge, but the Lord knows all.  He may be having us wait for His perfect timing for something to come to pass.

The Lord also may be trying us, to prove what is in our hearts.  The Scriptures mention many times how the Lord sought to prove His people. Some examples are in Exodus 16:4, Exodus 20:20, Deuteronomy 8:2, Deuteronomy 8:16, Judges 2:22, and Judges 3:4.


What to Do When Having to Wait

What can we do when we have to wait for something?  Well, for sure, we should not just "wait around" doing nothing.  We should keep busy in the tasks the Lord has given us to do.  For us ladies, that means keeping busy with cooking, cleaning, taking care of our husbands, our children, and all those things at home.  There is always much to do.  It may be tempting to lose heart when we are having to wait, but we must keep busy doing good.

Also, we must keep praying and laying our requests before God.  We must keep having our time in God's Word, really learning from the Holy Scriptures and being quiet and still before the Lord.  This, of course, is of utmost importance no matter what is going on in our lives.

So, when we have to wait, let us not lose heart but keep trusting in our Lord, knowing that He cares for us.  And let us always keep praying.

For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
~Psalm 84:11

This article appeared in issue #136 of The Christian Home Magazine.

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3 comments:

  1. Shannon said:
    I am 6 weeks pregnant with our third child. We prayed and waited for 4 years (my daughter turns 4 in March and we have been trying since she was born. I thought many times of giving up and not praying, but I didn't. I just knew God wasn't done with our family.

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