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}
Maybe waiting is not one of your strong assets. I know we all struggle with this one way or another. I know I do. For example it’s tough to wait for the traffic to move when you need to get somewhere, or wait on someone ahead of you in a supermarket line and you want to get going with supper. Waiting is not always an easy thing to do. There’s a saying, “Patience is a virtue.” We know enough the importance of patience. Patience indeed is a virtue and has power. When you exercise patience it can bring out an immense satisfaction and a sense of fulfillment. Think about those college students being patient in getting their degree. They know it’s going to come, but it may be 4 or 5 years away. They hang in there because they understand that if they persevere and stay patient, they will eventually get their degree. Once they do, they can move onward towards better things in life and maybe a great job. This is why the Lord said:
In your patience possess ye your souls. {Luke 21:19}
Without patience we will miss out on a lot of things. If that is applicable to earthly living, where things change all the time and life is passing and so short, how much more when it comes to eternal life? How much more should we hang in there and persevere in our relationship with our God who loves us so much and gave His life for us? How much more should we take the time out to wait on Him? I think it is so important to not only plan out our time and talk with Him, but also to wait on Him. Waiting on God to show up and reveal Himself and His thoughts and desires to us is very rewarding. No one I know of who waited on the Lord ever regrets doing it. God tells us how to wait on Him. He said,
And ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart. {Jeremiah 29:13}
That’s the important ingredient to waiting on the Lord: seeking after Him with all of our hearts. When we do this we will have a lot to talk to Him about in prayer. We will not be tongue-tied and bored. We will not easily give up. We will know what to say and time will go by fast. Waiting will not feel so long when we’re coming to the Lord with all of our hearts.
Waiting on the Lord is not just praying on our knees. When our hearts are seeking after Him and we are diligently seeking after Him, we can pray even when we’re stuck in a traffic. We can talk to Him, have a conversation with Him, and get Him involved with our situation. We can tell Him how much He means to us, or how much we appreciate Him taking care of us. We’re not going to get overcome by our situation but rather we’re overcoming it, because our minds and our hearts are on Him all the time, waiting for Him, talking to Him, and listening for Him.
Waiting on God is not just a one-time deal in a prayer hour we allocated during the day. Waiting on God is all the time. When our hearts are seeking after Him and waiting on Him to reveal Himself to us, we don’t stop waiting. We’re always looking to see how He’s going to respond. We don’t get up from prayer and forget about Him. We get up from prayer with our hearts still seeking after Him, looking for His answer. That’s why the scripture can tell us:
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}
When we wait for the Lord He will reward us. He will bless us immensely beyond words. We will hear a voice behind us telling us where to go, whether to turn to the right or to the left. Every step of the way we will be guided, because that’s the reward of God to those that wait on Him all the time. Isaiah penned it this way:
“And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.” {Isaiah 30:21}
The Lord will start to guide us and lead us because we’re always waiting on Him, always looking to Him and seeking after Him. We don’t stop waiting. Hence His admonition to us:
Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in Me. {John 15:4}
Abiding in the Lord means always talking to Him, communing with Him in our hearts, seeking after Him always, everywhere, any time and all the time. It’s not just, “Oh I prayed already this morning, on to what I want to do now…” and then visit God again before you hit your pillow at night. It’s all the time. That’s how it’s like to wait on the Lord. It’s all the time: Morning, noon and night. Always.
And that’s how we’re going to triumph in this life. That’s how we’re going to overcome the principalities of this world that overcome so many people today. So many people are without hope and strength. They go about living without joy and gladness and hope in their hearts. So many people are depressed and wishing to die all the time. They turn to all kinds of things to distract them from their empty living. Without God we can do nothing. Without God we have no power. Living without God is like having a body without a heart. You will not live. The psalmist puts it this way:
My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion forever. {Psalm 73:26}
If we want to live a fulfilling life, a life that overcomes everyday, filled with hope and joy, there is no other option for us but to wait on the Lord. Waiting on God is one of the greatest things we can do in this life. No one who waits on the Lord ever regrets it. We should wait on Him all the time, always, and all day long. If you struggle in waiting on Him ask Him to help you. I know that He will help you because He helps me. The only way to do it is to ask Him to help us. With His help we can do anything!
In God we boast all the day long, and praise Thy name for ever. Selah. {Psalm 44:8}
But I will hope continually, and will yet praise Thee more and more. {Psalm 71:14}
I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in His word do I hope. My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more than they that watch for the morning. {Psalm 130:5-6}
And my tongue shall speak of Thy righteousness and of Thy praise all the day long. {Psalm 35:28}
Prayer
Lord Jesus, You are so beautiful and so wonderful. You are so gracious and so loving to me. I love You so much! I thank You Father for You in my life today. I thank You that You will never fail me nor forsake me in this life. You will be here for me until the end.
I pray Father, that You will please help me to do Your will in my life today. Help me to wait on You all the day long. Help me to look to You, seek You, and find You. Help me to know and believe with all of my heart that You will reward me if I diligently seek after You. You will never fail me. You will be there for me always to hear my prayers and to see me through everyday. I ask for all of these things Father in Your most wonderful and lovely name, Jesus. Thank You, Father. Amen.