Waiting by the Brook: Learning to Wait Patiently on Godنموونە

A Problem With Waiting

The Lord will work out his plans for my life—for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever. Don’t abandon me, for you made me. Psalm 138:8, NLT

I don’t know about you, but I don’t do very well with waiting. I have a problem waiting for something as simple as checking out at the supermarket. Before choosing my line, I often look at each cashier and how quickly they are working. Sometimes I even count the number of items in the shopping cart of each customer in line. Armed with this critical information, I choose the line with the greatest probability of getting me in and out as soon as possible. But even after all of that, I become irritated when I find that the line to the right or left of me is now moving faster than the line I have chosen.

More to the point, I often struggle to wait patiently on God. There have been too many times when I have become impatient waiting for His response to something I have been praying about for weeks, months, and even years. I get a bit upset, even angry, when God seems silent and His answers are a long time in coming. I know that I am not the only one who struggles through the waiting. In fact, I suspect that you downloaded this devotional plan because, like me, you have had similar waiting experiences.

When we read about the lives of many men and women of faith in the Bible, we see that they were held in waiting patterns with God. What is more, just like us, they were challenged to wait patiently on God. Abraham waited twenty-five years for the promised son, Isaac. Joseph waited many years through difficult life circumstances until his childhood dream of being placed in a position of authority was realized. Hannah spent many childless years praying like crazy for the longed-for son. Then there was the prophet Elijah. God told Elijah to wait on Him beside the brook, Cherith. Elijah waited there, hidden away during a time of famine, until God revealed his next assignment to him.

All these stories have one thing in common. Regardless of how long or challenging the waiting period was, God was faithful to complete what He had started. Is there any reason to doubt that He can and will do the same for you and me?

Reflect: What is your earliest or most significant waiting experience? How did this or another waiting experience shape your feelings and thoughts about waiting?