“‘Though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry’ (Hab 2:3). That’s the hardest thing for the Christian, waiting for God to keep His promises.” – R.C. Sproul
Waiting sucks. Believe me, I know. I am the most impatient person that I know. When I pull into the parking garage at GCU, I generally go straight to the third or fourth floor because I don’t want to wait as I look for a parking spot on the lower floors. When I’m looking for somewhere to eat, I will almost never wait in a long line. In fact, sometimes I might give up on eating all together rather than waiting in a line. I love eating. I firmly believe that food is God’s greatest gift to mankind. For me to give up eating even one time just so I do not have to wait in a line really says something about my lack of patience. I refuse to watch TV shows on Netflix that are still currently running because I don’t want to get stuck waiting for the next season to come. The point is that waiting is tough for me. So when I read in God’s Word that I have to wait for something, my heart sinks a little.
The most basic principles of Christian waiting are found in the book of Isaiah.
“Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” – Isaiah 40: 30-31
This promise encompasses everything we need to know about waiting. First, we cannot just wait nonchalantly. That won’t get us anywhere. Isaiah tells us that we must wait specifically for the LORD. Not wait on the Lord. To wait on the Lord implies that God needs to somehow catch up to our timetable, as if God is late for His appointment. Rather, we wait for the LORD. Each and every day is lived as we patiently wait for God to work. This waiting involves an understanding that we do not know best, but God does. We need not wait anxiously. This truth frees us up for a much different kind of waiting than the kid who sits up all night on Christmas Eve in anxious excitement for the presents ahead of him. In fact, Scripture specifically tells us to rest as we wait (Ps. 37:7). There is a right time for everything (Ecc. 3), and it’s almost never according to our timetables. When the time is right, God will bring about the fulfillment of His promises. And we can trust that this is good (Rom. 8:28). This is a promise in which we can trust, and in this trusting we can find our rest, and as we rest, our strength will be renewed (Is. 40:30-31). Waiting on God to fulfill His promises may be the hardest things Christians are asked to do, but as the saying goes: “Good things come to those who wait.”
The Lord is not slow to fulfill His promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” – 2 Peter 3:9
Lukasz Saczek