We can all probably agree that waiting is no fun. Especially when we are waiting on God to answer a prayer.
Have you been asking the Lord to heal a loved one, yet the continue to battle a disease? Have you been praying and believing for salvation for someone, yet they still have not surrendered to God? Have you been praying for a financial blessing, yet you still struggle?
We pray and we pray and we pray, yet we don't see the answer. We feel like the waiting is killing us. We feel like our prayers are bouncing off the ceiling and never reaching God's ears. Our hearts cry, "This is too hard! Why can't He just answer immediately!"
Wait for the LORD; be strong and
take heart and wait for the LORD.
Psalm 27:14
Yes, the waiting is hard, but there are a few things we can do while we wait.
Ask forgiveness. While you are waiting on God, work on your heart. Do you have any sins that you have not yet repented of? Ask for forgiveness and turn away from that sin. While we will never be perfect this side of heaven, we need to strive to live a holy and sinless life.
Forgive others. After you ask God to forgive your own sins, forgive others of theirs. Don't hold onto grudges or bitterness. Forgive and let it go. The Bible tells us that if we expect God to forgive us, we need to forgive others. You will find that forgiving others really just frees you.
Pray. While you wait, work on your prayer life. Pray. Then pray again. Then pray some more. Thank Him for all He has done in your life, ask Him for the needs of others, bring your needs to Him. Just keep praying. Have an ongoing conversation with God all throughout your day.
Stay in the Word. Often when we are in a season of wait, we find Bible reading to be difficult. When it's hard, that's when we need it most. We find encouragement and life in the Bible. Stay in the Word each and every day.
Worship Him. Worship God. Worship Him through your song, through your prayer, your Bible reading, your service, how you live your life. Worship Him for all He has done. He is worthy of your worship.
Find joy. Waiting often makes us irritable. While you wait on God, find joy. Not happiness, that is circumstantial. I am talking about joy. Joy comes from knowing that even though you are waiting on God to answer your prayer, you can trust that He is in control and He has plans to prosper you, not to harm you. Joy is knowing that through it all, God is right there beside you. Joy is knowing that through your relationship with Him, you will one day live in Heaven with Him. Hold on to joy.
While you wait, be strong, keep living for God, and press on.
It's time for Share A Link Wednesday! Each Wednesday we invite you to leave a link to your latest blog post in the comments. We still desire to connect women of God with one another and encourage each other in Christ. So grab a cup of coffee or glass of sweet tea, sit back and visit a few blogs. Be encouraged and share your own stories.
"While you wait, be strong, keep living for God, and press on." Wonderful encouragement this morning!
ReplyDeleteMy post today: http://www.joanneviola.com/2019/07/gratitude-follows-grace/
I love this because it removes the myth that waiting is passive. Thanks for sharing this takeaway that waiting can provide us with various active ways of moving our faith.
ReplyDeleteMy post is about celebrating introverts.
https://www.lisanotes.com/celebrate-introverts/
Great thoughts! Sometimes, while we're waiting on God, He's waiting for us to take care of some of these things. I learned a while back, like Lisa said, that wait can be an active verb, like someone waiting tables. We can serve others in whatever way God places before us while we're waiting.
ReplyDeleteI wrote this week about a "duh" moment I had when thinking about longsuffering. I'd been thinking if I was doing it "right," it would be easier. But suffering is right in the word. But God is longsuffering toward us and helps us to be so as well: https://barbarah.wordpress.com/2019/07/29/longsuffering-is-hard/. I also shared an end-of-month wrap-up here: https://barbarah.wordpress.com/2019/07/31/end-of-july-musings-and-a-blog-anniversary-giveaway/.
Sometimes, He surprises us in the waiting season.
ReplyDeleteMy posts today are "Jesus on a Roller Coaster" https://drmichellebengtson.com/jesus-on-a-roller-coaster/ and a post my husband wrote, "How to make it through a devastating diagnosis" https://drmichellebengtson.com/how-to_get-through-devastating-diagnosis/.
Great and timely article. I have also learned that sometimes God has a reason for making us wait. Although we see it as something bad, God uses this time to work on our hearts, and that is good. Thank you for sharing. My latest post is on romance in real life and what it looks like, http://keepingthetiethatbinds.com/2019/07/18/romance-in-real-life/
ReplyDelete