Whether it be something as simple as waiting in line at the local coffee shop or as tricky as a pending medical diagnosis, waiting is a part of life. It is also a part of the Christian’s life. The difference is that once we enter a new life with Christ, our time in the waiting room takes on new meaning.
Understanding the spiritual truths concerning waiting is vital to our continued spiritual growth and development. Waiting’s intrusion becomes an opportunity. We can trust the Spirit to give us the strength to bear our circumstances and enable us to use time of waiting to grow in our intimacy with the Lord.
“Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” – Psalm 27:14
Patience and Humility
While in the waiting room, we are apt to stumble about. Our perspective on waiting is one of the ways our society is out of stride with a biblical worldview. Not that waiting was easy for our ancestors, but they were more at peace. Throughout the Bible and even specifically regarding the coming Messiah, waiting is a regular refrain in the life of faith.
Waiting well requires patience and humility. Waiting well demands we submit to a God who is sovereign. He alone is the One who controls the clock and the calendar. Complete submission admits God is sovereign, and I am not.
“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.” – Col. 3:12
Knowing the time or way God will work things out is not in our abilities. He has, however, given us the ability to rest solely in God’s knowledge. We trust his promises and wait with hope as God brings about his good work in us and for us.
The experience of waiting on God reminds us that it is not our circumstances that define our reality. Rather, it is the truth of Christ’s love and life in us. Union with Christ is what gives us hope in the waiting. (Rom. 8:28-30, Ecclesiastes 3:11, Isaiah 55:8-9, Philippians 1:6)
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. – Rom 8:28-30
Don Whitney reminds us of the freedom we have in the reward of discipline, and within spiritual disciplines is Jesus Christ’s expectation of those who are his. Whitney emphasizes,
Don’t think of prayer as an impersonal requirement. Realize that it is a person, the Lord Jesus Christ, with all authority and with all love, who expects us to pray.
Don Whitney
Obedience to the Lord while waiting is not to remain inactive or passive. Practically, we must set aside time daily to communicate with God through prayer and his Word. If you find yourself in the waiting room, these spiritual disciplines provide help if we purpose to put into practice what God has told us is best:
Seek God.
Redirect your focus by looking upward instead of inward. Dwelling on ourselves amid our circumstances has the potential to cause anxiety. Recalibrate the focus of your faith by moving the weight of your trust in self and others by consciously reorienting your thoughts on God.
“Yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;” – Proverbs 2:3-6
Go to the Word.
Spending time daily in God’s Word is vital – Bible reading and study gives guidance. Meditate on God’s character. The Scriptures are the voice of God and where the Spirit does his best work.
“But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by he rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.” – Psalm 1:2-3
Pray.
Spend time in prayer daily. You can pray for God’s promises and meditate as you read God’s Word. Allow truth to settle in your heart and mind. Enlist others to pray with you.
“I will meditate on Your precepts, and contemplate Your ways.” – Psalm 119:15 “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” – Romans 12:2
Trust.
We eagerly await Christ’s return, trusting all his promises are made good. We have hope!
“For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.” – Phil. 3:20-21
In the delays and the pauses of life, we become aware of our lack of patience. God works to save us from self-reliance and revitalize our faith and hope in him. As is common in biblical indicatives and imperatives, we play a part in our waiting.
Application
Seeking the Lord’s help in humility, going to the Word, and routine prayer with meditation provide potent opportunities to welcome God into every moment of our waiting. In spiritual disciplines, we keep our hearts focused on and renewed in him, even while waiting.
Are you in a season of waiting? If not, there will come a time. In your waiting:
- Meditate on God’s character
- Go to the Word
- Pray
- Enlist God’s people for prayer and counsel
- Trust God’s promises and God’s Spirit to work
For further reading:
Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life by Donald S. Whitney, Trusting God by Jerry Bridges, Overcoming Fear, Worry, and Anxiety by Elyse Fitzpatrick, Prayer by Timothy Keller
Debbie Swindell 