I am waiting by George Hodan

What Does It Mean To Wait On The Lord?

Waiting – it conjures up images of sitting impatiently in a chair with toes tapping and fingers drumming. I wait for my children to get off the bus at the end of a school day. I wait for the traffic light to turn green. I wait to pay for groceries in the checkout line. I wait to see my doctor in his office – known as a “waiting” room.

Being a rather restless person, I’ve never liked the idea of waiting. I thought it a waste of time. So you can imagine my distaste at the suggestion to “wait on the Lord” (Isaiah 40:31). The image of sitting in a chair, looking up to the sky, as the clock ticked away the minutes into hours, I was less than eager to submit. I thought waiting meant doing nothing until you heard from God.

But to my delight, I have learned otherwise. Henry Blackaby, in the Bible study, Experiencing God, states:

“You may think of waiting as a passive, inactive time. Waiting on the Lord is anything but inactive. While you wait on Him, you will be praying with a passion to know Him, His purposes, and His ways. You will be watching circumstances and asking God to interpret them by revealing to you His perspective. You will be sharing with other believers to find out what God is saying to them. As you wait on the Lord, you will be very active in asking, seeking, and knocking (Matt. 7:7-8). While you wait, continue doing the last thing God told you to do. In waiting you are shifting the responsibility of the outcome to God – where it belongs.”

Instead of sitting impatiently waiting for lightning to strike or for my eureka moment, I can be praying, watching circumstances and sharing with others. I can continue to actively pursue God’s will as I wait for His answer. In the meantime, I know now that I can continue doing what God last told me to do knowing I’m still in His will.

I no longer need to feel impatient, tapping my toes and drumming my fingers waiting on God. I can be active in seeking God’s answer.

I waited patiently for the LORD; He turned to me and heard my cry (Psalm 40:1 NIV).

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I can continue to actively pursue God’s will as I wait for His answer.

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