Waiting

“Gods timing, not mine.

Gods will, not mine.

Gods plan, not mine.

Gods glory, not mine.”

There is a newer song on the radio about waiting and I absolutely love it. Every time it comes in, I turn my radio up and just sing and worship in traffic or whatever. It is so encouraging for my day. I have attached at the bottom. Make sure to listen.

We wait for all kinds of things. Super market lines, concerts, big events, friends visiting, packages in the mail, etc.! If you are anything like me, you dont like waiting. We were on our way home from Ohio today and we stopped at a service plaza along the turn pike. We went in for restrooms and I grabbed my purse, just in case I “needed” a soft pretzel! Lowell tells me there is about 10 people in line for Auntie Anne’s. I head for the door and he says that we can still get a pretzel. I said “nah, I dont want to wait. You know me; I’m impatient.” He just nodded. We walked out and went on our way! I am not good at waiting. I asked lowell for about 2 months before we got engaged when we were going to get married or engaged. He always said soon. I am also not good at not knowing stuff. Please dont plan a surprise for me. I do not like it. 🤷‍♀️

Anyway, waiting can be hard, but normally there is a date or time that we have to wait untik. We wait in the line at the store until we get to the front. We wait for the big black Friday sale to get big discounts. We wait for the trip across the country to see a friend. There is a countdown and when that countdown ends, we do the thing we have been waiting for. I am also not good at cancelled plans. If I have been waiting for something and that gets cancelled, I’m a mess. Ask my husband and also pray for him in these times. I get probably too excited for things and if I am let down, i dont handle it well.

Waiting is not always bad. My friend has been waiting and waiting for her wedding. She is beyond excited to spend her life with the man of her dreams and start their life together. It is something to be so excited about! Their day is almost here and we have prepared so much and the wait and prep and stress is almost over. We are so excited to celebrate with them!

I have found in my life that the hardest waiting I have done is waiting upon the Lord. Waiting for God to give a sign or answer a prayer can be hard and long. The bible says in Isaiah 40:31, “but those who wait for the Lord will renew their strength. They will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.” That may be a couple different translations. When we wait, God gives us strength. I think waiting on the lord is harder for me because their is no timeline; no end date. God does not give us a time or date when our prayers will be answered. We wait and pray and pray and wait.

One thing I have learned in my waiting journey is to continue worshipping in my waiting periods. God reveals answered prayers to those who continued to be faithful during the dark waiting time. If you have a friend in surgery, you dont just pray while in the hospital room with them. You continue to pray in the waiting room, the whole way through the surgery. When we ask God for an answer, he may answer it right away, he may answer it in a week, a month or years. When we see unanswered prayers, we lose faith. We lose hope. It is harder for us because we think God is not listening. God is always listening. However, there are times where he waits us to wait. He wants us to learn something and he is making us wait.

I have been trying recently to change the questions I ask God. When I am going through a dark valley, my go to question to God is why? Why are you doing this? Why are you putting me through this? Why do I have to go through this? But I have been trying to change the questions. What are YOU trying to teach ME? What am I to learn from this? Asking those questions change my perspective. I am not sitting there feeling sorry for myself. I am wondering what Hod is trying to tell me… what am I to learn from this? It still is not always easy asking those questions, but it turns the attention off ME and on God!

In Isaiah 60:22, God promises that when the time is right, He will make it happen. Gods time is perfect and everything is in his perfect time. Some things are revealed to us here on earth, but other won’t be until we get to heaven. Some answers are too vast for God to show us here on earth. We have to wait for heaven for the glory He has to br revealed.

My advice for you while waiting:

1. Dont give up.

2. Change the questions you are asking

3. Conti ue in your worship, whether at church, in the drive thru, or mowing the yard.

4. Wait for the things that matter.

5. Gods plans is bigger and better

6. Let God show you the way

If you have any other advice or verses to share, write them in the comments below! I would love to see them. I dont have this waiting thing figured out; please dknt think that. This is a topic that God has laid on my heart a lot recently and I wanted to share my thoughts. I think it is important that if God has laid something on your heart, that you share it with someone because you never know who else is going through a similar journey in their life.

God, I pray for all those who are in a waiting period of life. I pray that they put they faith and trust in you. I pray that they ask what you are trying to teach them. I pray for them to have strength and to mount up with wings like eagles. I pray that they have patience and peace. I pray that they take comfort in You and your time. I pray that they know that they are loved and and people are praying for them.

This is the song I was talking about earlier. Hopefully it loads, if not, it is called While I Wait by Lincoln Brewster. https://youtu.be/NswPPVgMaPE