Don’t you feel like you’re always waiting for something?  Maybe you are waiting to go on a vacation. Maybe you’re waiting for the next school year.  Maybe you’re waiting to hear back about a job interview.  Maybe you’re waiting to turn sweet sixteen so you can get your driver’s license. Are you waiting to hear back from that college you applied at? Are you waiting for the teacher to post the grades? You may be waiting to hear the results of a blood test.  You wait in lines at the store.  You wait for the next book to come out in a series.  You wait, and you wait, and you wait.  

Typically, we don’t look at waiting as a good thing.  It’s almost a punishment.  We want what we want and we want it now! We live in a society of instant gratification and when forced to wait we get frustrated. In some areas, we’ve been able to eliminate the wait. We can just take a picture with our phone and have it instantly.  If I don’t want to wait in line for my coffee, I can download the app and it will be there ready for me when I get to the store.  I can pay for “prime” with my online shopping and get the package in 2 days instead of 10.  Some things aren’t that easy and we’re forced to wait.  Waiting doesn’t get easier, but sometimes the wait is worth it.  

“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. Have you ever looked at the wait that we’re given as a good thing?  This waiting that you experience in life is a time for renewal of strength.  If you didn’t have to wait for summer to get here, would you be as excited about it?  Would you have the same appreciation for the sunshine and longer days? Maybe you are having to wait out a storm in your life.  Romans 12:12 tells us to “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” Along with that waiting comes patience, a virtue that is lacking in our culture.  

God’s timing is perfect. Sometimes you may be waiting on Him.  You may be waiting for so long that you don’t feel like He hears your prayers.  Lamentations 3:25 tells us, “The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him.” He is faithful and loves you.  Have you ever thought that perhaps He could be waiting on you?  Is He waiting for you to come and follow Him? Do you recognize that He loves you so much more than we are capable of imagining?  Therefore, He certainly doesn’t want us to suffer. Yes, there is a lot of waiting that goes on in life. As you get older, that waiting is just going to continue, some things you’ll still have to wait for, others will be new experiences. Find joy as you wait. “But as for me, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me.” Micah 7:7. Whatever it is you’re waiting for at the moment, take heart and know that He knows.  I’m going to close with one of my favorite verses, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” Rejoice in whatever it is you’re waiting for, pray about it, and thank God in ALL situations.

By Heather Powell