WAITING ON GOD
The hurried heart seldom learns what God desires to do in a life. There is strength reserved for the soul that consents to be still before God. We speak often of working for Him, of striving, of pressing forward, yet the deeper life is not born in haste but in holy waiting. The Lord does not reveal Himself fully to the restless spirit, but to the one who lingers in His presence, content to remain until He speaks. “Truly my soul silently waits for God; from Him comes my salvation” (Psalm 62:1).
Waiting on God is not inactivity, but a living surrender. It is the soul bowing down, yielding its own wisdom, its own timing, its own will. In that yielding, there is a powerful work of grace. God loosens our grip on what we thought necessary, and teaches us to rest in what He knows is best. The heart that waits is not empty, but full of expectation, for it has learned that God Himself is the reward. “The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him; it is good that one should hope and wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord” (Lamentations 3:25-26).
“Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; do not fret because of him who prospers in his way” (Psalm 37:7). We often desire immediate answers, clear direction, swift deliverance. Yet God, in His wisdom, delays. Not to deny, but to deepen. Not to withhold, but to prepare. Waiting becomes the school of faith, where trust is refined and love is purified. The delay that troubles us is the very instrument by which God draws us nearer to Himself.
In waiting, we discover the poverty of our own strength and the sufficiency of His. The flesh grows impatient, but the spirit learns to lean. The natural mind seeks to act, to fix, to resolve, but the renewed heart learns to abide. “Abide in Me, and I in you; as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me” (John 15:4–5). And in abiding, there is transformation. We begin to desire not merely the answer, but the presence of the One who answers.
Waiting on God also aligns us with His time. What we would rush, He ripens. What we would force, He forms. His purposes unfold not according to our urgency, but according to His perfect will. And when His time comes, the answer is not only given, but given in fullness. The soul that has waited finds that God’s way was higher, His plan wiser, His gift richer than anything it would have chosen.
Therefore, let the heart be still. Let it cease from anxious striving. Let it turn its gaze upward and remain there. Waiting is not wasted time; it is the place where God works most deeply. It is the altar upon which self is laid down and faith is lifted up. And in that sacred stillness, the Lord draws near, revealing His strength, His peace, His unchanging love.
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O Lord, teach me the grace of waiting. Quiet my restless heart, and turn my eyes fully toward You. Help me to trust Your timing, to rest in Your wisdom, and to seek Your presence above all else. Amen.
BDD
