Waiting

The Bible tells us that without faith, it is impossible to please God and that those who come to Him, must believe that He is and that He is the Rewarder of those who diligently seek Him (Heb. 11:6). Herein lies the secret of waiting. For when we know and are certain of Him whom we cannot see and are fully convinced that the One in whom we wait is true and faithful, we can rest with perfect peace in our waiting (Isa. 26:3). We can be still and behold the working of our God (Psa. 46:10) because He is –

Wise: His wisdom is perfect. His wisdom is manifold or many sided. He never makes a mistake. Whatever He does is precise and beautiful. Not only what but even when He does things is faultless. His timing is always right – never early, never late.

Omniscient: God knows all things. There is nothing hidden from Him. He knows our future. He knows the end from the beginning. He knows what we need before we can even ask Him (Mt. 6:8). He knows all things.
 

Caring and Good: His boundless love towards us and His loving kindness which endures forever causes us to enjoy His goodness and grace. Whatever He does is good. Good from the aspect of it being top quality or first class and good from the aspect that whatever He does is always for our welfare and not for our calamity. This is why the Bible encourages us to come to Him with our weariness and heavy burdens. This is why it encourages us to cast our cares upon Him. The reason is that He cares for us (1Pet. 5:7).
 

He cares for us more than sparrows, which if they could speak, would testify that there is not a single day that they go hungry. He cares for us more than lilies which are clothed with such beauty, despite their brief existence, that even a modern day Solomon – with his Armani suit, Gucci shoes, Rolex watch, Ray-Ban sunglasses with an iPad, MacBook Air and BlackBerry thrown in for style – would not have been able to compare with them. Jesus, asks, “Are you not much more valuable than they?” (Mt. 6:26)
 

All Powerful: He who made the heavens and the earth from nothing – just the Word of His mouth and He who can do the impossible, is the God we believe He is. Nothing is too difficult for Him. With Him, all things are possible.
 

Faithful: His faithfulness reaches the heavens. He can never deny Himself. All may change but He never changes. It is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one stroke of a letter of the Law to fail (Lk. 16:17). If He is faithful in even the little things that He has spoken, how much more will He be faithful and true to His promises? God never fails!
 

No wonder then that the Lord Jesus, as the Son of Man, could show by example as our Forerunner that the will of God was foremost for Him (Heb. 10:7). His food was to do the will of God (Jn. 4:34). Even though He had desires and a will of His own yet He always submitted to His Father’s will (Mt. 26:39, 42, 44). Jesus knew that He was in perfect hands. He knew He could trust in His Father with all His heart and not lean on His own understanding. In all His ways He acknowledged that the ways of His Father was the best (Prov. 3:5, 6). It could not get better.
 

Three different facets of waiting are described below. While in these, I have given examples of my own experiences, I believe the basic underlined aspect of waiting would be the same.
 

1. Waiting for God’s Promises:
 

Scripture is filled with several promises that God has made. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is one of them (Acts 1:4). Now we know that God who has promised cannot lie nor will He change His mind. Yet, though I ask, believing, in Jesus’ Name, I find myself still waiting. I know for certain that my Father will never fail.  For He who has given the promise to His children, will through Jesus Christ fill us with the Holy Spirit and clothe us with power from on high. I am certain that God will fulfill His promise and that no matter how long it takes for its fulfillment, I must and I will wait.
Abraham is a classic example that comes to mind. Though God had given him the promise that he would have a son, he had to wait for almost 25 years to see its fulfillment. It is possible that at each of Sarah’s monthly menstrual cycle of every passing year he would have wondered, “Maybe now, God will fulfill His promise. Maybe this time, we shall see His faithfulness” and each time He would see nothing. Year after year he waited. On one hand He would have recognized how increasingly impossible the situation was getting as he got older; worse still as Sarah’s womb was as good as dead yet on the other hand he clung to the fact that God is faithful to His promises (Rom. 4:19-21). God never fails! Abraham waited. He waited on God in faith, believing that the great “I Am” is who He is and he continued with diligence and perseverance to hold on to the promise (Heb. 6:12). Abraham never gave up!
 

2. Waiting for God’s Will:
 

There are times when we know what God wants us to do. We have recognized His will and observe the direction that He is guiding us into. Yet we simultaneously sense within us that our time has not yet come to do what we recognize He wants us to do. We know we have to wait; for how long we cannot say but that we need to wait, this we know. The Bible has examples of those who knew what God wanted them to do but needed to wait for God’s right time; and that is what they did – they waited. I will cite three examples to bring out this aspect of waiting.
 

Moses is my first example. He would have recognized God’s calling for his life when he was 40. Yet though God’s calling remained unchanged, Moses had to wait. With all his training in Pharaoh’s palace; with all the knowledge and skills he acquired; with all his youthful zeal and fire – God made him wait. He had to wait for nearly 40 years. With all his knowledge and skills; training and zeal, Moses had to wait in his father-in-law’s house doing one of the most ordinary and nondescript things for someone of his stature. Nevertheless, he waited; faithfully tending sheep. He persevered with diligence. He held on to his God with faith. Then at the right time, God’s right time, God met him and went with him in the task he was called. Even after spending several years leading Israel through the wilderness, Moses continued to depend on God’s timing and presence. Exodus 33:15 records for us this attitude: “If Your presence does not go with us, do not lead us up from here”.
 

David is my second example. Though he was still a young lad, he was chosen and anointed to be the next king of Israel. In that time he learnt submission in waiting. David knew Saul wanted to kill him. He could have easily killed the king for he had the opportunities. He could have used these opportunities to justify his action saying that God had opened a door for him and that in any case he was to rule in Saul’s place. But no! He knew that it was not right to raise his hand against the Lord’s anointed so instead He kept committing himself to Him who judges righteously. The Psalms are filled with this. At the right time, God’s right time, David was given the role he was chosen for.
 

The Lord Jesus is my third example. Though all scripture spoke of His coming and the work He was going to do; though at the age of 12 He knew so much as to confound teachers of the Law – yet He waited. It could have been possible to justify the need for action saying, “There is so much need in the world. I am only here till 33 so I might as well be a blessing to as many as I can for as many years as possible.” But no, Jesus waited in submission to His Father’s will. He waited till He was 30, leading a quiet life, being faithful in a simple job that had nothing to do with His calling as a Messiah. He waited for His Father’s time.
 

Sometimes however, we get impatient while waiting. We want to see some action. We think we can help God with our wisdom and ideas. The result can be disastrous. We see this in Abraham, the father of faith. He got impatient in his long years of waiting He thought he would help God fulfill His promise and acted on Sarah’s “wise” proposal. The result – through Ishmael we have the entire Arab world set its face against Israel, God’s promise through Isaac.
If only we can wait. Wait in perseverance; wait in diligence; wait in faith. We can be certain that as sure as rivers reach the sea or the sun rises in the East – God will show us His faithfulness. We can rest in His faithfulness.
 

3. Waiting on God for things we need but cannot buy:
 

Most often, we ask for material things – a house, a car, gadgets and other equipment. I often ask God for things that will add to my children’s education.  All of what we ask could be legitimate; things that we need. We pray and ask God, for His word says, “Ask.” We say, “Lord, You know all things. You know my need and You are able to supply all my needs according to Your riches in glory” – but often we are not willing to wait either to find His will or for Him to make a way. Instead of waiting, we rush in with our own wisdom acquiring what we have set our hearts to obtain. We rush to sources of the world be it banks and finance companies; be it attractive finance schemes and low EMIs. We put our trust in the strength of the influential and the powerful. We find these ways quicker and more certain than the way of waiting. Our arguments? “How will I know if it is God’s will?” “What if God does not provide?” “How long can I go on waiting?”
 

Isaiah 31:1 says, “Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help (Egypt is a simile for the world), and rely on horses, and trust in chariots because they are many, and in horsemen because they are strong, but they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the Lord!” Psalm 147:10 continues in the same vein saying, “He does not delight in the strength of the horse; He does not take pleasure in the legs of a man. The Lord favours those who fear Him, those who wait for His loving kindness.”
 

The truth is that God’s ways are the best. There is no other way that is better. Besides, His ways are also foolproof and error free. When we wait on God we can be certain that because He cares for us; because His thoughts towards us are always for our welfare; because we are more precious to Him than sparrows whose needs are met without them worrying… this can go on – we are safe in the will of our Father in heaven. He did not withhold His only Son from us; now how much more will He not also bless us with all that is good and all that we need.
 

By waiting for God trying to discern His will we achieve many things with one stroke. 

1. Because we are uncertain as to what His will is, we are constantly seeking His face.
2. Our dependence on Him increases. 
3. We are obedient to His word that says, “Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another.” (Rom. 13:8) 
4. We can be certain that even if we do not have understanding into what His will is, because we put my trust in Him, we will not be put to shame. He will always guide our steps into His best. If it is God’s will for us to have what we ask, He will make a way. If it is not, He will shut the door. 
5. We learn contentment (Php. 4:12). 
6. We are free from the creditor and 
7. Most important of all, we glorify or honour God.

There are times when we can ask God for things in faith, believing, in Jesus’ name. We can wait on Him and diligently seek His face in prayer. Yet, He chooses not to answer. Instead He just strengthens us and says, “My grace is sufficient for you.” (2Cor. 12:9) The Apostle Paul while writing on his experience with earthly needs said, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” (Php. 4:13) It is with this attitude of submission that we learn to let go and say, “Lord, not my will but Your’s be done. Father in Heaven, glorify Thy name.”
 

I am fully conscious that what I write is not the trend in the world today. But then, the ways of the world are very contrary to the ways of God. Yet, what I write is what I believe the scripture wants us to be. If I am considered a fool by the world, so be it. I know that in Christ Jesus, I am blessed and my reward will be great. If what is written is true and in line with the teachings of the Bible, then let us together have this as our attitude; and if in anything there is a different attitude, God will reveal that also to us (Php. 3:15).