Waiting on God – Our God Works For Us
The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. Lamentations 3:25-26
For those of us who are impatient by nature, waiting can sometimes be an agonising exercise. We become restless. We start thinking about ways to expedite matters. This becomes our focus, and we allow it to dominate our lives. The challenges we are facing become like giant mountains looming before us that will not go away. I love what Eugene Peterson says about waiting. He says:
“Waiting means going about our assigned tasks, confident that God will provide the meaning and the conclusions.”
That confidence in God comes only when we are willing to accept that God knows what He is doing in our lives. The sovereign God who is in control of the universe is also in control of our lives. When we doubt this, we tend to take things into our own hands. We start thinking about what we, in our own strength, can do to “help God out.” This can exacerbate our situation, causing more unrest and anxiety. It causes us to become weary and to lose hope. Psalm 147:10-11 says,
“He takes no pleasure in the strength of a horse or in human might. No, the Lord’s delight is in those who fear him, those who put their hope in his unfailing love.”
God works on our behalf
While we wait on God to intervene in our difficulties and hardships, we can put our hope in Him. In His power because He is working on our behalf. Isaiah 64:4 says,
For since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him!
When we act on God’s behalf, we are standing in the way of God acting on our behalf. We fail to see what He wants to do in our lives so that His will can be done. We fail to hear what He has to say. We fail to see the “assigned tasks” that He has for us while we wait. The tasks that might just bring about the breakthrough that topples the giant mountains into the sea. Let us wait on God and put our confident hope in Him. Let us allow our almighty and faithful God to work on our behalf.
When God brings a time of waiting and appears to be unresponsive, don’t fill it with busyness; just wait. Oswald Chambers
Reflection
Have you gotten tired of waiting on God and tried to help Him out? Will you allow Him to work things out for you in His way and in His time?
Prayer
Forgive me, Lord, if I’ve tried to do things my way. I pray that You would move those mountains of challenges and difficulties into the sea by Your power and Your might. Thank you, Lord, that You are working on my behalf. Thank You for the “assigned tasks” that You have for me while I wait upon You. I pray for Your strength to carry them out. In Jesus’ name, amen.
