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Friday, June 26, 2015

Waiting

“I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.” (Psalm 130:5 KJV)

The American Heritage Dictionary defines wait like this:  “To remain inactive in anticipation; to delay; postpone.”  To me this definition seems to imply doing nothing—everything is at a standstill.

On the other hand, the Hebrew word for wait (as reflected in Psalm 130) is waiting with hope and expectation.  In my mind, this definition changes things in a big way.  Waiting with hope and expectation is an active waiting and seems to be a positive state of mind, one where we find contentment to still worship the Lord and communicate our love for Him in each moment of the day. 

Therefore, it seems that as Christians we should wait differently than those in the world around us.  I fully realize how many times I have not waited any differently than those around me, to my shame. Thankfully, the Lord is infinitely patient with us.

Jennifer Kennedy Dean writes the following in Live a Praying Life: Open Your Life to God’s Power and Provision:  “God has a good, loving, and productive purpose for scheduling waiting periods into the prayer process.  When He has called on you to wait, it is because the wait is necessary to the outcome.  He is doing something during the waiting period that He could not do without it.”

What have you learned from periods of waiting to see how God would answer your prayers?

I wonder how many times we miss God’s answer to our prayers and continue to wait, because He answers them differently than we desire?

How does seeing the wait period in prayer help you reframe your expectations in communicating with God through prayer?

Please join with me in prayer:

Dear Father, we come to You in hope, waiting for answers to our heart-felt prayers.  Waiting is so hard, Father, in this world of fast and faster, we expect our prayers to be answered in a blink of an eye.  When our prayers are not answered quickly enough or in the way we desire, we grow impatient and angry.  Help us to understand that the wait time is important; help us to not lose heart. In Jesus’ precious name.  Amen. 

From My Heart to Yours,

Kim


2 comments:

  1. Waiting in hope for God's answers is something I've learned, too, is so necessary if we want Him to work in and through us. It's not always easy, but the results are always better than we could have ever expected.
    Wonderful post, Kim!
    Love and blessings!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Martha, for sharing some of what you've learned. Waiting can be a struggle but in the end it so worth it. I'm happy to know my post touched you.

      Love and blessings!

      Delete

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