Everyday Step with Jesus

Waiting is one of those things that very few people like to do…it is evident when you go to the store and there is a long line. Just look around and look at the faces of frustration (sometimes even our own face expresses the same frustration). We especially get frustrated when we are in a hurry to get somewhere. When we are trying to get somewhere and we have to wait, the waiting becomes a stumbling block. It becomes another hurdle to overcome to get to where we are headed. But waiting is not always a bad thing. There is a season for everything, which means there will be times when we will have to wait. The beautiful thing about waiting in the Lord is that we will see the light at the end of the tunnel; His glory. But how do we wait and what do we do while we are waiting? Keep on reading… 

Now a days we are so used to being on the move and doing something, or else we feel unproductive. But just because we are doing something doesn’t mean that what we are doing is productive. Instead of keeping busy just to keep busy we need to learn to wait.  Waiting is not just about waiting aimlessly but waiting with purpose, waiting on God. 

The waiting process can be frustrating and difficult to endure, but if we invite God to be with us during the waiting, we will see His glory. This doesn’t mean that we won’t feel like giving up at times but it does mean that during those times when we feel like we can no longer wait, we have Him to run to for comfort and strength. During those times we are to take our frustration, questioning, and doubt to the Lord. His Word tells us: 

“casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.”

‭‭I Peter‬ ‭5‬:‭7‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

God is so caring, and He cares about what you and I go through. When we take everything we are feeling to God, we release it into His hands. In return, we will receive His comfort and guidance when we seek it. His Word tells us:

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭7‬:‭7‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

When we seek Him, we will find Him. Therefore, when we seek His guidance, we will find it. This means that even though we might feel like giving up at times and feel lost, we will have reassurance of what we need to do. We may not know what we need to do, but the Lord knows what He is doing and when we seek Him in guidance, He will guide us.

During the waiting, we can become confused if we aren’t seeking Him. This leads to feelings of uneasiness and may even lead to our minds being tormented about the different choices that are ahead of us. Uncertainty is something hard to deal with, especially when we consider the different paths we can take but aren’t quite sure how they will turn out. 

I found myself in a situation like this, having to make a choice between waiting or moving on. I was so confused and full of doubt, and I didn’t know what path to choose. I was getting tired of waiting, especially when I didn’t see things getting better and I didn’t like what I was seeing. During this time, it was hard to remain hopeful and I wanted to stop waiting and just move on, but I didn’t have the green light from the Lord to move on. What I mean by the green light, is that I didn’t feel peace about moving on. This is one of the ways we will know when the Lord wants us to continue to wait. We will not have peace about moving on, we won’t have that reassurance. But even though I was waiting, I hadn’t made the conscious decision to stay and wait. I was just waiting because I was afraid to move on because I didn’t feel peace about moving on. During this time I was confused, discouraged and frustrated. However, when I took all of that to the Lord and made the conscious decision to trust and wait on Him, He began to move. 

This is why I said earlier that we need to wait with purpose, making that conscious decision that it may not come right away but deciding to trust the Lord that He will move on your behalf. Don’t just wait out of fear like I did, because then we are paralyzed and not really trusting the Lord. So although you are waiting, it doesn’t necessarily mean you are trusting the Lord. We need to wait for the right reasons, out of trust and knowing that our God works it all together for good. 

If you are waiting and trying to decide what path to take; whether you should wait or move on…take it to the Lord. Take your questions, doubts and frustrations to Him. Let Him know what you don’t like, how tired of waiting you are, how you have lost hope. Release all these things in His presence and then you can receive His guidance. When you receive His guidance you will be able to make the conscious decision of what to do. Don’t allow fear to paralyze you and don’t stay stagnant thinking you are waiting on the Lord, when in reality you are waiting out of fear. If we are waiting then we need to wait consciously, not out of fear or uncertainty. When we wait consciously on the Lord, we will see how He brings us out of the fear and frustration, out of the darkness, and establishes our steps. I know that’s what He did in my situation, and He will do it for you too.

“I waited patiently for the Lord; And He inclined to me, And heard my cry. He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps.”

Psalms 40:1-2 NKJV