Waiting for God

By Marilyn McGrath

My brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of any kind, consider it nothing but joy, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance; and let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1:2-4

There are times when these verses from James are hard to swallow. And I must admit that recently I have turned away from God to go my own way, because I want what I want, even if God does not plan for me to have it. And what has happened is – nothing. After a lot of running here and there, down blind alleys, following misinformation, I find myself right where I started. Except that I feel empty. I miss my conversations with the Lord. I feel directionless when I don’t lift my ideas and plans up to the Lord for His guidance. Now I understand why the psalmist starts a psalm complaining to or about God and ends the psalm singing the Lord’s praises and thanking Him for being his rock of salvation.

I find comfort in Timothy, when he reminds me that even if I am unfaithful, God remains faithful, for He cannot deny who He is. (2Timothy 2:3). So, I can turn back to God, curl up at Jesus’ feet, and wait for His plan to come to fruition. I can add this hope to the list of things I wait for: for the virus to recede, to hug my children and grandchildren, to laugh with friends at Isabel’s coffee shop, to sit in church and see the people in person, the way Phil sees them in his mind’s eye, the people who make up our sweet body of Christ.

We are all waiting for something and we all know that waiting on the Lord is good. Even if it is a struggle.

Waiting reveals what we worship: What we focus on reveals what we value, and what we value determines what we worship.

Waiting is never wasted: God isn’t withholding His promise from us. Though His timeline is different than ours, in our waiting, God prepares us for the plans and purposes He has for us.

Waiting helps us focus on God’s faithfulness: God conquered death so that we can have eternal life. If we find ourselves growing weary from waiting, we can look for evidence of God’s presence daily, and look back on what He has already done for us. This helps me hold onto hope. Hoping in God is never wasted because the One who conquered death is still in control, and He is always at work in our waiting. I know in my heart that waiting for God is not in vain. My hope is in the Lord.

Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the Lord. Psalm 31:24

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11: 28