Would you bear with me while I write out my thoughts? I'm a teacher after all. I can't "get it" until I give it away. Maybe it will be of some use to you, but I know at least that consolidating my reflections to share will be a blessing to me.
I pray to God-- my life a prayer--
and wait for what he'll say and do.
My life's on the line before God, my Lord,
waiting and watching till morning,
waiting and watching till morning.
Psalm 130:5-6 MSG
Dictionary definitions of waiting:
- to remain or rest in expectation, readiness
- to serve the needs of, be in attendance of (as in "lady in waiting")
- the act of remaining inactive or stationary
- being and remaining ready and available for use
"Wait" in Psalm 130 comes from the Hebrew word "qavah"-- to wait, look for, hope, expect, or to collect, bind together. Most often used in Psalms and Isaiah.
Selected other appearances of the word "qavah":
1st use in this sense (waiting): For your salvation I wait, O Lord. Genesis 49:18
Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. Psalm 25:5
Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. Psalm 27:14
Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts. Isaiah 26:8
Even youths grow tired and weary and young men stumble and fall, but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:30-31
Those who hope in me will not be disappointed (put to shame). Isaiah 49:23
Are there any among the idols of the nations who give rain? Or can the heavens grant showers? Is it not you, O Lord our God? Therefore we hope in you, for you are the one who has done all these things. Jeremiah 14:22
Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 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. Lamentations 3:22-26
Smart people talk about waiting and this psalm:
If the Lord Jehovah makes us wait, let us do so with our whole hearts; for blessed are all they that wait for him. He is worth waiting for. -Charles Spurgeon
And in his word do I hope. This is the source, strength, and sweetness of waiting. Those who do not hope cannot wait; but if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. God's word is a true word, but at times it tarries; if ours is true faith it will wait the Lord's time. A word from the Lord is as bread to the soul of the believer; and, refreshed thereby, it holds out through the night of sorrow expecting the dawn of deliverance and delight. Waiting, we study the word, believe the word, hope in the word, and live on the word; and all because it is "his word," -- the word of him who never speaks in vain. Jehovah's word is a firm ground for a waiting soul to rest upon. -Charles Spurgeon
Oh, it is the waiting for the Lord that keeps the soul waiting upon the Lord! -Octavius Winslow
It is the posture of rest. A soul waiting for the Lord is a soul resting in the Lord. Waiting and resting! Wearied with traversing in vain the wide circle of human expedients; coming to the end of all your own wisdom, strength, and resources; your uneasy, jaded spirit is brought into this resting posture of waiting on, and waiting for, the Lord; and thus folds its drooping wings upon the very bosom of God. Oh, how real and instant is the rest found in Jesus! Reposing in him, however profound the depth of the soul, however dark the clouds that drape it, or surging the waters that overwhelm it, all is sunshine and serenity within. -Octavius Winslow
Waiting has four purposes. It practises the patience of faith. It gives time for preparation for the coming gift. It makes the blessing the sweeter when it arrives. And it shows the sovereignty of God, -- to give just when and just as he pleases. -James Vaughan
In all your waitings remember two things: Let it not be so much the event which you wait for, as the Lord of the event; the Lord in the event. And take care that you have a promise underneath you, -- "In his word do I hope", -- else "waiting" will be too much for you, and after all it may be in vain. -James Vaughan
- How can I benefit from waiting? guidance, a strengthened heart, God's glory, renewed strength, not being disappointed, not being ashamed, God's goodness expressed in my life
- How do I wait? in prayer, by redirecting hope, by redefining expectations, making God's glory #1 in my life, watching in vigilance
Lessons learned
- Waiting is clinging to God, binding myself to Him.
- Waiting is attending to God's desires and not forging ahead on my own.
- Waiting is being available to be used as God requires.
- As I wait for God, my hope must be in Him. I am waiting for Him, not a specific result. My expectation is in Him.
- The primary "waiting" of God's people is for the Messiah-- for the first incarnation at Christmas and then for the promised return some day. Jesus is all my heart waits for. He is my everything.
And now what do I do with this?
This is not the answer I expected or wanted maybe to my question this morning. I'm glad in a way, because now I feel certain it's from God and I didn't make it up myself. I need to wait for the Lord, watch for His communication with me about this matter, make sure my expectations are in Him and not in any particular outcome to the current dilemna I'm facing. I need to put myself on hold, waiting and watching and hoping in Him.
It's a bright summer 6 am by now. I was waiting for the Lord, not the morning, but I think they both have come. Having heard from God, I bet I can go back to sleep for a few hours now.
I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me. Psalm 3:5
