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Waiting.

Do you like to wait?

It really tests out that patience muscle we’ve all been given. Let’s be honest though, no one likes waiting. 

There’s no better book in the Bible to turn to for wisdom, no matter the season you’re walking through and that is Proverbs.

One verse that always stands out to me is when I’m walking through a season of waiting is Proverbs 13:12 which says,

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.”

This generation is known as the ‘now’ generation. They’re always wanting the next best things as soon as it hits the stores. I think we all know what it feels like to get the thing that we want when we want it. It’s a pretty great feeling. 

Unfortunately, I think so many of us have become all too reliant on the instant gratification that comes with getting what we want when we want it. So, when we do have to wait for something we so desperately want and our expectations are not met, we experience disappointment and our hope begins to fade. Mainly because we think we’re never going to get the thing we’ve been promised.

A delayed promise isn't necessarily a denied promise.

Sometimes prolonged waiting can be like an affliction. As we eagerly await and hope for our promise to come to pass, the longing we feel can make our heart sick.

I’m reminded of this one time when I was a little girl and I went on a holiday with my aunty, uncle and cousins. As soon as I had left, I was already ready to turn around and head back home. I missed my mum and this longing I had to be back in my own bed, hurt my heart and manifested itself into physical symptoms like a headache and nausea.

I remember the pain in my heart like it was yesterday, and that’s because I’ve been experiencing the same pain lately as I long for and wait on a promise that’s yet come to pass.

When the heart is sick, it causes us unrest, anxiety and despair. Our heart is the centre of our being. It gives us life and so when hope is crushed, our heart can be crushed too. So, when we’re in the waiting, and time continues to pass without our promise in sight, we can become spiritually dry and vulnerable to the lies of the enemy.

Lies like:

  • “Oh that’s never actually happening”
  • “Don’t bother waiting anymore”
  • “You need to make your own opportunities because God won’t bring them your way”

Have you heard these lies before?

Dashed hopes can lead to great frustrations, especially when our expectations are so high. However, we can’t let this tempt us to go at it alone and to try and fulfil the promise ourselves.

This waiting is an opportunity for God to work in our hearts, and develop our character and spiritual maturity.

Romans 8:25

“But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.”

These long stretches of time where we are desperately waiting for a longing to be fulfilled, should actually be opportunities for us to richly encounter God. He is the fulfilment of all that we long for, whether we see it now or in eternity. As the second part of the Proverb says “longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” 

Will you let God speak life into you and your situation once again?

Psalm 39:7

“And so, Lord, where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you.”

When all seems lost because we can’t naturally see the fulfilment of all that we are promised, let your hope not be deferred. Rather, continue to place it in the one true hope that we have, Jesus. He is the “strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls” (Hebrews 6:19).

Friend, you will not be disappointed.

 

Have a beautifully blessed week,

 

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