Waiting on God
By David A. Wheeler
Introduction
Yesterday during the service, the theme of Waiting on God
seemed to run through several parts of the service. During worship, we sang a
new song with this theme. During the ministry of the Word our guest speaker,
Craig Keuhn said, “There are many who do not understand waiting on God.” I felt
impressed to write a few thoughts regarding this issue and pull from some past
studies.
The most notable Scripture regarding this issue is Isaiah
40:31:
But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and
hope in Him] shall change and renew their strength and power; they shall lift
their wings and mount up [close to God] as eagles [mount up to the sun]; they
shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint or become tired.
The Purpose in Waiting
Man has accomplished many things to overcome waiting:
• Drive-through for food, prescriptions, even viewings of
loved ones gone before
• Microwaves to cook our food quicker than the fire.
• Cell phones so that we can instantly call someone or
someone can call us.
• Email/ Instant Messaging - we can immediately send a
message without paper, envelope and stamp
• Self serve check-out, gas
• Instant credit / credit cards - need we say more?
What are you waiting on God for? New job, Home, Spouse, Car,
Computer, Ministry Opportunity - Something else? Waiting on God is difficult.
Waiting in our fast paced society can be frustrating. Waiting challenges our
inabilities. In an independent society, we are called to be dependent on God
and this just goes against the grain of our earthly experience. While we are
waiting, we can feel trapped and without provision. Emotionally we can feel
desperate, distressed, weak, oppressed, constrained, helpless, needy and
powerless.
As we examine the Scriptures, we can find the purposes of
waiting. In Isaiah 40:31 “waiting” is linked with “strength.” In the New
International Reader’s Version Isaiah 40:31 says we “will gain new strength”.
It is not just the renewing of a worn out soldier that occurs, but the gaining
of new strength as well. I have three different examples of waiting in this
context of gaining strength:
The first is like a dam. Water accumulates, the pressure on
that dam builds and eventually it will break if there is no way to release that
harnessed power. In addition, building a dam allows for the characteristics of
the river and riverbed to be changed and the harnessed power released in a
controlled manner or in an uncontrolled manner like a flood. God’s desire for
our life is for us to wait for Him so that we can build strength. There may be
a need for us to wait until we are broken in order for His will to be
accomplished. In this case, the force of the water will be so significant that
it causes us to overcome the evil that is before us. In other cases, He may
choose to release the harnessed power within us as it is needed to accomplish
His will. Another scenario would be that the dam would not break and there is
not a controlled release. In this scenario eventually there would be overflow
or blessings. The river is the river of God flowing in our lives. The riverbed
is a reflection of the changes God has made in our life. They are deep and
sometimes hidden from view. The process of waiting in this example allows the
flow of God to happen in our lives while we are being changed. Notice that it
is a process of learning how to allow God to change us and flow through us. In
this process, you will remain stationary or where you are at and God will flow
through you.
The second example that came to mind to describe waiting is
that of a locomotive, an old steam engine from the Wild West. A steam engine
would continue to build steam while the fire is being stoked. Or as the fire
goes out, the lack of heat would cause the dispensation of the steam. This
process of waiting on God and the building of strength would be for movement.
In the process as the steam builds and there is a controlled release, the
energy produced will move not only those things that are ahead of the
locomotive, but also the source of and the processing center of that energy or
strength. In addition, the strength that is gained here is not just to propel
the locomotive, but will also enable it to transfer a large load from one place
to another. While the dam is stationary, the locomotive is an example of
gaining of strength for movement.
Other Byproducts of Waiting
I remember growing up and there were times when my mother
would cook something good using a pressure cooker. This is the third example.
Again, it is dependent on the heat being applied and the seal being tight so
that leakage did not occur. I can hear the tick of the pot as the steam would
build and the release of the pressure would occur in the controlled top. You
not only were able to hear that something was cooking, but there was a residue
in the air of something good. As the time would go by, our taste buds would
begin to be awakened and those that gathered expectancy and anticipation would
rise of the meal to come. Sometimes we are that pressure cooker and there is
something good happening on the inside of us. We want to share it with all
those around. They sense that something is happening on the inside, but the
timing of the full release is not just right. God has not completed the work
yet. The fragrance of our prayers for release pierce the air encouraging others
that something good is coming. This same fragrance should encourage others to
get in their own pressure cooker to allow God to change them. God’s work in us
should encourage those around us to conform to the image of Christ. I’m sure
this is the kind of waiting and anticipation that our Lord Jesus Christ
experienced prior to the disciples knowing that He was raised from the dead.
Another example would be the disciples’ anticipation and expectancy of the
promise of the Comforter at the Day of Pentecost. And, this should be our
anticipation and expectancy of Rapture of the church. It may be Friday, but
Sunday’s on its way!
Waiting upon God protects us, deepens our trust in Him,
forces us to seek His ways and brings Him the most glory. Waiting upon God is
exercising confidence in God’s timing and help during difficult times. It
allows us to build confidence in God, not in our own resources. Times of
waiting are times the Lord is testing whether we are really seeking Him and His
ways. Waiting prepares us to recognize and embrace future fulfillments of His
promises. When we have learned to recognize His timing, we will be able to
discern more clearly what is worldly and what is God. Each fulfillment of a
waited promise prepares us for His ultimate return and keeps us open to Him
without delay and able to enjoy His presence. Each fulfillment is similar to
the joy of resurrection.
There is also Growth or Change as we wait. Waiting on God is
a crucial step in which our dependence upon God grows. When we receive
blessings without being humble, it brings increased susceptibility to
temptation. Humility keeps us from pride. Pride will cause us to pursue things
with selfish ambition, where we would otherwise forget the Lord. We also grow by
learning to wait on the Lord for needed supply.
Who's Waiting?
I can’t discuss the issue of waiting without asking this
question, “Are you waiting on God or is He waiting on you?” You should be
waiting on God and He is often waiting on you! God has given us a number of
promises in His word that we are encouraged to wait on Him for their
fulfillment. Hebrews 10:23:
So let us seize and hold fast and retain without wavering
the hope we cherish and confess and our acknowledgement of it, for He Who
promised is reliable (sure) and faithful to His word.
In addition to the promises in His Word, we should wait upon
the Lord for the things He has spoken in our hearts. Habakkuk 2:2-3:
2 And the Lord answered me and said, Write the vision and
engrave it so plainly upon tablets that everyone who passes may [be able to]
read [it easily and quickly] as he hastens by.
3 For the vision is yet for an appointed time and it hastens
to the end [fulfillment]; it will not deceive or disappoint. Though it tarry,
wait [earnestly] for it, because it will surely come; it will not be behind on
its appointed day. [Heb. 10:37, 38]
God is waiting on us. God’s will is not a difficult subject.
His desires are plainly stated within the scriptures. We often get so
distracted on what we are waiting upon God for that we forget to wait (i.e.
serve) on God. He is waiting - for us to live a separated, holy life, for us to
trust Him completely, for us to “go and make disciples”, for us to love the
unlovely, reach the unreachable, change the unchangeable through Him! We are
His feet, His hands, His eyes, and His heart!
Maturity and Trust in God
In Galatians 5:22-23, we have a description of the Fruit of
the Holy Spirit.
22 But the fruit of the [Holy] Spirit [the work which His
presence within accomplishes] is love, joy (gladness), peace, patience (an even
temper, forbearance), kindness, goodness (benevolence), faithfulness,
23 Gentleness (meekness, humility), self-control
(self-restraint, continence). Against such things there is no law {that can
bring a charge].
The Fruit of the Spirit is singular. You cannot possess one
part of the Fruit of the Spirit and not possess the other. If you have the
Fruit of the Spirit active in your life you should manifest all aspects of the
Fruit of the Spirit. The Fruit of the Spirit indicates maturity. The Gifts of
the Spirit indicate calling. One aspect of the Fruit of the Spirit is patience.
The Greek word, “makrothumia”, translated “patience” there are two root
meanings that are translated “long” and “anger”. Patience then is literally
translated “take a long time to get angry”. In waiting on God, we must be
patient.
Patience is forbearance, self-control, moderation,
restraint, tolerance, leniency, and mercy. Patience is NOT just a feeling, an
instantaneous supernatural power, just external behavior, passive or
indifferent. Patience is a Christian virtue because it is intimately tied to
our faith, and faith is required as we wait on God.
Waiting on God means that you trust God. Author of Just Me
& the Kids, Barbara Schiller, in an article in Christian Parenting Today
Magazine (Nov/Dec 1998, Vol. 11, No. 2, Page 72) said, “He [God] alone can
grant perfect timing to the events of our lives.” In the same article she
stated, “Waiting on God is intricately linked with trusting that He alone knows
what is best for us.” Waiting on God, then, is the adjustment of our lives to
the truth concerning Him, which we know God is the one unchanging fact from
everlasting to everlasting. Waiting on God means putting this life, which has
so many uncertainties, into right relationship with Him of whom we can be
absolutely and everlastingly certain. Waiting on God means that you adjust your
life to Him rather than to circumstance, and that you set your hope on Him
rather than on the wittiness and cleverness of men. Waiting on God means that
definite personal activity is busily occupied in adjusting the whole fact and
circumstances of life to the unchangeable and unalterable fact of God.
Entrenched
The Hebrew word translated “waiting” …has affinity with a
word that means “to entrench.” God works for him that entrenches himself in
Him. The idea of waiting for God here is that of digging ourselves into God. So
waiting on God means learning more about Him and His ways, digging into His
word and His heart. Waiting on God means readiness for any command; that state
of perpetual suspense which listens for the word in order that it may be
immediately obeyed. Waiting on God means power to do nothing except under His
command and power to do anything under His command. Waiting on God needs
strength rather than weakness. It is strength that holds strength in check –
remember the dam –its strength to hold the water has to be greater than the
strength of the water.
Validate and Justify!
Validate what you are waiting on God for. There are several
ways in which you substantiate or validate your waiting. Confide in other
spiritual leaders in whom you trust. Ask them to pray and seek wisdom on your
behalf as to the validity of what you are waiting for. Seek scriptural
references that literally confirm the promise. Be “pregnant” with the vision,
anticipating its fulfillment. Sometimes the challenges you face for the
fulfillment of what you are waiting for is a sign that it is not from God. Pray
and allow God to lead you.
Justify the waiting. Waiting should never prevent you from
fulfilling God’s will in the “Now!” There are many things you can do that are
God’s will that you have already been given the ability to accomplish. Feeding
the poor, loving someone in trouble or visiting someone in the hospital can be
performed today!
Planning While you Wait!
Waiting is a struggle. Part of the timing issues is knowing
when to wait and when to take action or knowing when to take control and
letting God take care of things. Planning is not wrong, but there are right and
wrong ways of making plans. Life without God is secularism. Stress and our
response is a good indicator of our dependence on God. Chapters 29-32 of Isaiah
give several instructions on developing plans.
There are several examples of planning in the wrong way. The
first is that we cannot believe that we can hide our plans from God. Isaiah
29:15
15Woe to those who [seek to] hide deep from the Lord their
counsel, whose deeds are in the dark, and who say, Who sees us? Who knows us?
God does see all that we do. Even the plans we have hidden
in our hearts.
Secondly, we must be careful not to reject God’s plans for
our lives. Isaiah 30:1-12
1WOE TO the rebellious children, says the Lord, who take
counsel and carry out a plan, but not Mine, and who make a league and pour out
a drink offering, but not of My Spirit, thus adding sin to sin;
2Who set out to go down into Egypt, and have not asked Me--to
flee to the stronghold of Pharaoh and to strengthen themselves in his strength
and to trust in the shadow of Egypt!
3Therefore shall the strength and protection of Pharaoh turn
to your shame, and the refuge in the shadow of Egypt be to your humiliation and
confusion.
4For though [Pharaoh's] officials are at Zoan and his
ambassadors arrive at Hanes [in Egypt],
5Yet will all be ashamed because of a people [the Egyptians]
who cannot profit them, who are not a help or benefit, but a shame and disgrace.
6A mournful, inspired prediction (a burden to be lifted up)
concerning the beasts of the South (the Negeb): Oh, the heavy burden, the load
of treasures going to Egypt! Through a land of trouble and anguish, in which
are lioness and lion, viper and fiery flying serpent, they carry their riches
upon the shoulders of young donkeys, and their treasures upon the humps of
camels, to a people that will not and cannot profit them.
7For Egypt's help is worthless and toward no purpose.
Therefore I have called her Rahab Who Sits Still.
8Now, go, write it before them on a tablet and inscribe it
in a book, that it may be as a witness for the time to come forevermore.
9For this is a rebellious people, faithless and lying sons,
children who will not hear the law and instruction of the Lord;
10Who [virtually] say to the seers [by their conduct], See
not! and to the prophets, Prophesy not to us what is right! Speak to us smooth
things, prophesy deceitful illusions.
11Get out of the true way, turn aside out of the path, cease
holding up before us the Holy One of Israel.
12Therefore thus says the Holy One of Israel: Because you
despise and spurn this [My] word and trust in cunning and oppression, in
crookedness and perverseness, and rely on them,
We must be careful to know the plans of God and not reject
those plans. Rejecting those plans and not waiting for Him is rejecting God!
Thirdly, Godly counsel is a must in the planning process.
Not only in laying out those plans, but also in the implementation of those
plans we must seek the counsel of the Lord. Isaiah 31:1-3
1WOE TO those who go down to Egypt for help, who rely on
horses and trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they
are very strong, but they look not to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek and
consult the Lord!
2And yet He is wise and brings calamity and does not retract
His words; He will arise against the house (the whole race) of evildoers and
against the helpers of those who work iniquity.
3Now the Egyptians are men and not God, and their horses are
flesh and not spirit; and when the Lord stretches out His hand, both [Egypt]
who helps will stumble, and [Judah] who is helped will fall, and they will all
perish and be consumed together.
I am again reminded of the Scripture found in Psalms 20:7
which encourages us to trust in God.
7Some trust in and boast of chariots and some of horses, but
we will trust in and boast of the name of the Lord our God.
Waiting is all about learning to trust God and His plans,
His timing!
The last example that I would like to present in regarding
waiting on God and the wrong way to plan is that we cannot give ourselves to
foolish planning. Isaiah 32:5-7
5The fool (the unbeliever and the ungodly) will no more be
called noble, nor the crafty and greedy [for gain] said to be bountiful and
princely.
6For the fool speaks folly and his mind plans iniquity:
practicing profane ungodliness and speaking error concerning the Lord, leaving
the craving of the hungry unsatisfied and causing the drink of the thirsty to
fail.
7The instruments and methods of the fraudulent and greedy
[for gain] are evil; he devises wicked devices to ruin the poor and the lowly
with lying words, even when the plea of the needy is just and right.
Foolish planning is a result of our own greed and desires,
not God’s. It is in essence the opposite of what God desires in us.
Making plans the wrong way leads us to destruction. We focus
on what we might do. God’s plans are usually larger than we believe is
possible. We do not think we can carry out God’s design. We lower our
standards. We adopt lesser goals. We accomplish them. We are proud of our
accomplishments. We encourage others to do the same.
In addition to seeing the wrong ways of planning there are
right ways to plan. The first is to look and identify what it is that God is
planning. Isaiah 29:16
16[Oh, your perversity!] You turn things upside down! Shall
the potter be considered of no more account than the clay? Shall the thing that
is made say of its maker, He did not make me; or the thing that is formed say
of him who formed it, He has no understanding?
Embrace Your Destiny
We were made for a purpose. This Scripture is key to our
understanding that we submit to what God has made us for. Waiting is sometime
necessary to discover our purpose in life and to discover and fully embrace
what God desires to do through us in the earth. Our planning must include
discovering God’s desires for our lives.
Secondly, we must learn to accept God’s plans for our lives.
Sometimes waiting helps us work through our earthly desires and emotional
challenges to accept what God has planned for us. We all want to hear God say
“Well done my good and faithful servant…” Being a servant is not natural in our
society and in the post “Adam and Eve” world. Isaiah 30:18-22
18And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting,
looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up,
that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is
a God of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who
[earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His
victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken
companionship]!(A)
19O people who dwell in Zion at Jerusalem, you will weep no
more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when He hears
it, He will answer you.
20And though the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and
the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide Himself any more, but your
eyes will constantly behold your Teacher.
21And your ears will hear a word behind you, saying, This is
the way; walk in it, when you turn to the right hand and when you turn to the
left.
22Then you will defile your carved images overlaid with
silver and your molten images plated with gold; you will cast them away as a
filthy bloodstained cloth, and you will say to them, Be gone!
Accepting God’s plans brings freedom!
Thirdly, waiting on God and planning the right way requires
that we see God’s plans. Isaiah 31:4-9
4For the Lord has said to me, As the lion or the young lion
growls over his prey--and though a large band of shepherds is called out
against him, he will not be terrified at their voice or daunted at their
noise--so the Lord of hosts will come down to fight upon Mount Zion and upon
its hills.
5Like birds hovering, so will the Lord of hosts defend
Jerusalem; He will protect and deliver it, He will pass over and spare and
preserve it.
6Return, O children of Israel, to Him against Whom you have
so deeply plunged into revolt.
7For in that day every man of you will cast away [in
contempt and disgust] his idols of silver and his idols of gold, which your own
hands have sinfully made for you.
8Then the Assyrian shall fall by a sword not of man; and a
sword, not of men [but of God], shall devour him. And he shall flee from the
sword, and his young men shall be subjected to forced labor.
9[In his flight] he shall pass beyond his rock [refuge and
stronghold] because of terror; even his officers shall desert the standard in
fear and panic, says the Lord, Whose fire is in Zion and Whose furnace is in
Jerusalem.
We must see that only God’s plans will survive and lead to
our deliverance. All of our attempts and man made plans will fail. All of our
worship of things we have made with our hands will fade away. Only God and His
plans will last. We must not see our own makings, but the makings of God and
God alone. For planning to succeed we must embrace and see God’s plans.
Lastly, is found in Isaiah 32:8
8But the noble, openhearted, and liberal man devises noble
things; and he stands for what is noble, openhearted, and generous.
We must openly support those plans that are from God. In
this verse you could replace the word “Nobel” with “Godly”. Our open support is
necessary to further the Gospel. God’s plans require us to be the instruments
of its fulfillment. We must openly support the things of God. Waiting does not
mean we are silent, but there must be a clarion call.
Making plans the right way leads us to everlasting life. We
focus on what we and God can do. We have faith and believe we can carry out
God’s design. We raise our standards. We adopt larger goals. God accomplishes
His plans through us. God receives all the glory of our accomplishments. We
inspire others to trust God.
Conclusion
Remember Three Aspects of Waiting on God
There are three important aspects to waiting upon God:
1. Trust – Trusting is a product of waiting on God. We must
ultimately learn to trust God and His timing. Waiting challenges us to dig deep
into what God has for us. It deepens our relationship with God and other
servants of Christ. Can we wait patiently, will we get ahead of God? Will we
miss the timing of God and be behind Him instead of right in step with Him.
This is our test. Without God we will fail as we turn to our own resources.
2. Reject – We must consistently turn away from all that is
not God. Man made idols will lead to our destruction. We must reject all that
is not His plan for our lives and turn our lives completely to His care. We
cannot trust man-made resources and supply, only those things that are divinely
inspired by Him.
3. Pray – Prayer in the season of waiting is a must. Don’t
pray for your specific use in the plans of God, instead pray for the
fulfillment of God’s plans whether you are what He chooses to use or not!
Ultimately, we are not what matter, it is the plans of God and their
fulfillment that matter.
Waiting on God can be difficult and at times painful, but a
necessary part of our relationship with Him! Our relationship with God is
strengthened as we learn to trust and rely on God and His timing. With our
microwave mentality, it is easy to expect the things of God instantaneously.
Like a child eagerly awaits his birthday to receive gifts and have a party, we
are more tuned into how we can receive verses than how we can give. When our
focus is distracted on receiving, we often miss the opportunities to wait on
God in our service to Him and others and give. As you wait on God, you will
gain strength, learn to trust Him and fulfill His will by serving others.
Psalm 25:3-5.
3 Yes, let none who trust and wait hopefully and look for
You be put to shame or be disappointed; let them be ashamed who forsake the
right or deal treacherously without cause.
4 Show me Your ways, O Lord; teach me Your paths.
5 Guide me in Your truth and faithfulness and teach me, for
You are the God of my salvation; for You [You only and altogether] do I wait
[expectantly] all the day long.
