THE WAITING TIME

 

MAY 10. 

"And hope maketh not ashamed, because the love of God…" Romans 5:3-4. 

Waiting time is never a wasted time, it is the time that has been built into a purpose. Sometimes the waiting time is not out of your own choice but circumstances have made it necessary for you to wait. 

As we look at all the people who had waited for things to happen in the bible, we begin to see the waiting times as active, purposeful times designed to build up our faith, our character and our endurance. There is the element of hope that whatever you are waiting for with absolute confidence will meet all your expectations. 

From the Old Testament to the New Testament, we encounter periods of waiting. We discover that God’s timing is completely different from our own timing and expectations. 

Waiting is not a time of putting your hands under your chin and remaining inactive and announcing to all that you are waiting on the Lord for something. This is the time of prayer, spiritual awakening and preparation for your expectations. There is the story of the community who were mostly farmers, they were praying for rain for their crops. They had been praying for a miracle and they agreed to meet in a field for a communal prayer. Only one person came with an umbrella, others were not expecting their prayers to be answered. Halfway through their prayers it started raining, an answer to their prayer yet they were not expecting it to rain. 

Sometimes we are double minded like these farmers, we pray without believing and trusting that the Lord will answer our prayers- James 1:8, Psalm 27:14 tells us to wait on the Lord, be strong, be courageous and wait.

The Lord sent Samuel to anoint David and made him spend his 20 years of waiting fleeing from Saul and living life as a refugee. David could have made a plan B and moved on but he waited and became the man after God’s own heart. 

All of us are in queues waiting for the Lord to answer us, some queues are very short as God promises us in Isaiah 65:24, “before they call, I will answer; while they are speaking, I will hear”. This tells us that God is attentive and very prepared to provide solutions before we ask him. 

We must not forget that a day in the eye of the Lord is like a thousand years in our sight. Moses spent 40 years in the desert, shepherding his father in-laws flock before God called him to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and they spent another 40 years wandering in the wilderness. The Lord is our source of strength and our strength is renewed at the time of waiting. 

Today we will look at the queue we are waiting on, are we struggling with our expectations? Are we weary and discouraged? Are we comparing ourselves with others who seemingly have no cares in this world? 

Remember you are made in God’s image and you do not share anyone else’s DNA, you are specially made and your waiting time is designed to fit your purpose. 

Wait on the Lord and remember the waiting times of Joseph, from the pit to being displayed in the market and then sold off, then to the prison and finally to becoming the Prime Minister of Egypt. He went through the waiting time just to prepare him to salvage his family from starvation. 

Do not look at the timeline when you are waiting, the times and seasons are in the hands of the Lord Jesus Christ. In the silence of the waiting time our God is still at work. The waiting time for the birth of John the Baptist was timed for the fulfilment of his assignment. He was the forerunner for the mission work of the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Let us Pray: Father in heaven we thank you for opening our eyes to our times of waiting for your purpose in our lives. We thank you for the ability to wait for your manifestations. Blessed be your holy name. Amen. 

Bible verses: Isaiah 40:31, 2 Peter 3:8-9; Romans 5: 3-4, Lamentations 3:25, James 1:6-8. 

Amina Ukiwe