A Few Words on Waiting
“Wait about four weeks.”
We, especially those of us in North America, really don’t like such words. We want things to happen, move forward, make progress, show results, and we’re often anxious to move on to the next thing. (Guilty as charged.)
Well, wait we must. The “God Loves Deaf Kids” app is with the release team, and we’ve entered the period of being hands-off while they move it to a standalone platform. There, it can be easily found, installed, and put to good use. (As opposed to hidden within another tool.)
This is a good thing — painful in the waiting — but a good thing.
This is also an opportunity to recall familiar scriptures, and some of God’s training exercises, like…”wait.”
Psalm 23, the Shepherd’s Psalm, has the phrase “He makes me lie down in green pastures.” Note that word – He MAKES me lie down. If you’re like me, you’d be all about the green pasture and still water, as long as it includes a good book and a fishing pole. Nope. Not part of the program. Like a child fussing before a much-needed nap…just lie down…just wait.
There are at least eight other scriptures in Psalms alone that speak of waiting for the Lord. These are written by the one God called “a man after His own heart,” also known as the shepherd king of Israel. We can suppose he says something worth our attention.
(All from the New International Version)
Psalm 5:3 — In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.
Psalm 27:14 — Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.
Psalm 33:20 — We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield.
Psalm 37:7 — Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.
Psalm 38:15 — Lord, I wait for you; you will answer, Lord my God.
Psalm 40:1 — I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry.
Psalm 119:166 — I wait for your salvation, Lord, and I follow your commands.
Psalm 130:5-6 — I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.
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The prophets Hosea, Micah, Isaiah, and Ezekiel also address waiting on the Lord. A quick search reveals seven more scriptures:
Hosea 12:6 — But you must return to your God; maintain love and justice, and wait for your God always.
Micah 7:7 — But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Isaiah 8:17 — I will wait for the Lord, who is hiding his face from the descendants of Jacob. I will put my trust in him.
Isaiah 26:8 — Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts.
Isaiah 30:18 — Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!
Isaiah 64:4 — Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.
Lamentations 3:24-26 — I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.
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Granted, we’re not technically waiting for the Lord while the release team and the app stores go through their paces to bring this next tool into the hands of children and families worldwide. Technically, we’re waiting on humans. But really, God wasn’t at all surprised by this development, and He’ll make sure that His plans succeed in His timing.
For now, we wait — on humans, certainly — but really, on God.