One of the most difficult things for me to do is to wait. Waiting involves patience, and they say patience is a virtue. It is a virtue that I have difficulty obtaining! I just hate waiting in long grocery lines, I get impatient when traffic keeps me from moving forward, and I loathe waiting and waiting and waiting in doctor’s offices. Don’t they know that I, too, have plans later on that day and cannot sit needlessly in an office just waiting? Can you identify with any of these irritations? Before I say that I am a lost cause, I must admit that God has been diligently working with me on this very matter, and ever so slowly I am getting better!
Have you ever wondered what God is up to you in your life and why on earth He seems to take so long in answering your prayers? Or maybe you are waiting on God to reveal a new path or direction for your life. Why does He seem to tarry so? We easily grow impatient waiting for God’s apparent delays. The ironic thing is that when we take matters into our own hands because we are not willing to wait, oftentimes trouble comes into our lives due to our sometimes reckless haste. You know what I’m talking about—taking that job you really shouldn’t have and now you are miserable. Making hasty plans without waiting for confirmation and now all your plans are falling apart. The list goes on an on. Then we wonder why God allowed this dissatisfaction or disaster to come upon us. While it is true that oftentimes God does take His time in answering us, usually it is because the things we ask for may require a long time in their preparation for us. In reality, it is not because He is slow. Sometimes it is simply because WE are the slow learners and He knows He needs to walk slowly with us to teach us a thing or two.
These are the times when God is actually waiting on us. He has so many blessings to give us, but we fail to receive them because we are the ones who do not go forward with Him. It is almost as if we expect Him to do it all. We lift up a quick prayer and then expect Him to move in our behalf. Because of His loving-nature, he often does just that. Other times, it is as if our requests have fallen on deaf ears. We implore Him over and over but He still does not answer us. Could it be that He is the one waiting for some action from us? Over-waiting is not the best course of action either. While it is true that at times we need to just be still, other times we need to put feet to our faith and move forward. Yes, get off that cozy couch and move! Christianity is not passive, but rather proactive. Many divine promises are conditioned upon the beginning of some action on our part. Notice I say the beginning. God isn’t expecting us to do it all—He just wants to see us prayerfully and trustingly moving forward. If we take the wrong step, He is sure to redirect us.
Take Abraham for instance. Great things were promised to him but first he was required to leave his home in Chaldea and go out into unknown territory. Then there were the 10 lepers who were told by Jesus to go show themselves to the priests for healing. Were they healed instantly? No. Were they healed when they finally arrived and saw the priests? No. They were healed “on the way”. They had to do something and it required faith to do it. They obeyed Jesus and began moving forward. It was then that they were cleansed. What about the Israelites who crossed the Red Sea to evade their enemies? God waited to part the Red Sea until their feet touched the water.
God is looking for prayerful men and women of unwavering faith. His desire is for us to come to Him for everything, but also to press forward because our trust and faith is in Him. We will fight battles here on earth, but victory comes through Christ who fights by our side and it is in Him that we are conquerors. If we wait on the sidelines with fear and trembling for our Helper to come before we join in the battle, we will have waited in vain. This is actually called the over-waiting of unbelief. God does want to pour forth His richest blessings on us, but I think in order to do so, He requires us to press forward with bold confidence and rightfully take what is ours.
So next time you start to question God and why he is so slow in answering your prayers, take a long hard look at yourself and boldly ask Him if there may, in fact, be something that you should be doing instead. Maybe it is really God waiting on You!
But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:8-9
Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths. Isaiah 2:3
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Isaiah 30:21
Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice, Blessed are all who wait for him! Isaiah 30:18
Have you ever wondered what God is up to you in your life and why on earth He seems to take so long in answering your prayers? Or maybe you are waiting on God to reveal a new path or direction for your life. Why does He seem to tarry so? We easily grow impatient waiting for God’s apparent delays. The ironic thing is that when we take matters into our own hands because we are not willing to wait, oftentimes trouble comes into our lives due to our sometimes reckless haste. You know what I’m talking about—taking that job you really shouldn’t have and now you are miserable. Making hasty plans without waiting for confirmation and now all your plans are falling apart. The list goes on an on. Then we wonder why God allowed this dissatisfaction or disaster to come upon us. While it is true that oftentimes God does take His time in answering us, usually it is because the things we ask for may require a long time in their preparation for us. In reality, it is not because He is slow. Sometimes it is simply because WE are the slow learners and He knows He needs to walk slowly with us to teach us a thing or two.
These are the times when God is actually waiting on us. He has so many blessings to give us, but we fail to receive them because we are the ones who do not go forward with Him. It is almost as if we expect Him to do it all. We lift up a quick prayer and then expect Him to move in our behalf. Because of His loving-nature, he often does just that. Other times, it is as if our requests have fallen on deaf ears. We implore Him over and over but He still does not answer us. Could it be that He is the one waiting for some action from us? Over-waiting is not the best course of action either. While it is true that at times we need to just be still, other times we need to put feet to our faith and move forward. Yes, get off that cozy couch and move! Christianity is not passive, but rather proactive. Many divine promises are conditioned upon the beginning of some action on our part. Notice I say the beginning. God isn’t expecting us to do it all—He just wants to see us prayerfully and trustingly moving forward. If we take the wrong step, He is sure to redirect us.
Take Abraham for instance. Great things were promised to him but first he was required to leave his home in Chaldea and go out into unknown territory. Then there were the 10 lepers who were told by Jesus to go show themselves to the priests for healing. Were they healed instantly? No. Were they healed when they finally arrived and saw the priests? No. They were healed “on the way”. They had to do something and it required faith to do it. They obeyed Jesus and began moving forward. It was then that they were cleansed. What about the Israelites who crossed the Red Sea to evade their enemies? God waited to part the Red Sea until their feet touched the water.
God is looking for prayerful men and women of unwavering faith. His desire is for us to come to Him for everything, but also to press forward because our trust and faith is in Him. We will fight battles here on earth, but victory comes through Christ who fights by our side and it is in Him that we are conquerors. If we wait on the sidelines with fear and trembling for our Helper to come before we join in the battle, we will have waited in vain. This is actually called the over-waiting of unbelief. God does want to pour forth His richest blessings on us, but I think in order to do so, He requires us to press forward with bold confidence and rightfully take what is ours.
So next time you start to question God and why he is so slow in answering your prayers, take a long hard look at yourself and boldly ask Him if there may, in fact, be something that you should be doing instead. Maybe it is really God waiting on You!
But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:8-9
Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths. Isaiah 2:3
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Isaiah 30:21
Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice, Blessed are all who wait for him! Isaiah 30:18
1 comment:
Great reminders, Diana! I seem to go through seasons where in one season I am waiting on the Lord and not taking action until led. Then in the next season I find that moving forward and trusting His guidance as I move is the focus. Although His character never changes, He sure mixes things up to keep us on our toes and totally dependent on Him. It sure keeps us growing!
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