I hate waiting.

I hate waiting. Doesn’t everyone?

I mean, “Bring on the wait!” is something that no one said ever.

But this week something important has occurred to me about waiting, maybe for the first time.

God is in the waiting.

He’s in our waiting just as much as He’s in the moment of resolution when everything is finally made right again.

And I don’t mean that just as some kind of superficial spiritual platitude for papering over our deferred hopes or unanswered prayers either.

He really does dwell in those spaces of times when we’re still waiting for healing, for direction, for breakthrough, or for the fulfilment of his promises.

He’s in the waiting

So often we can be impatient for the unfolding ending to arrive, because we think that’s the point at which God shows up.

But when I look through the Bible I’m reminded that it’s often in the middle of seasons of waiting when God is most actively at work.

God didn’t just appear to the Israelites when they finally reached the promised land, he showed up in a burning bush right at the start of their wilderness journey, and he continued to show up and work miracles for them again and again throughout their 40 years of wandering.

It was whilst David was still living as a cave dweller in hiding from Saul, that he was anointed to be Israel’s king. It was whilst Joseph was still imprisoned, that God started speaking to him and helping him to interpret people’s dreams. And it was on the very first day that Daniel began praying, that an angel was released in response to him.

In each of these stories, and many more besides, the Bible paints a picture of a God who is present and actively working, even as his people wait.  

And if He was in the waiting then, isn’t He also still in our waiting today?

Taking Heart

Psalm 27: 14-15 is a passage I keep finding myself drawn back to at the moment, and it says this:

“I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart, and wait for the Lord.”

(Psalm 27: 14-15)

But whilst I think this is a beautiful passage, what does it really mean in practice?

How do you begin to be strengthen yourself in the waiting? 

How do you remain confident in God’s goodness, when your experiences haven’t seemed to line up and you’ve been left disappointed again and again?

Honestly, it’s something I’m still trying to figure out fully myself, but here’s a few ideas below.

6 ways to wait well

1. Keep a daily thankfulness list in your journal

When you’re facing disappointment it’s really easy to let it swallow you up whole and to lose all hope. So try to recall examples of God’s faithfulness to you in the past, and goodness to you in the present every single day. Make it habitual and keep a record. Ann Voskamp’s book ‘One Thousand Gifts’ is a great place to start if you want more inspiration on this.

2. Stop speaking negatively

Every time you speak negativity or hopelessness over your situation it is just reinforcing that negative message in the neuro-pathways of your brain. So stop speaking out your worst fears over yourself.

If you want to feel more hope-filled, choose words of hope and life instead. As Proverbs 18:21 says, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue” so choose to speak life over your situation.

3. Stay in the word

When things are painful or challenging, or when you feel frustrated or stuck, it’s really common to want to avoid God and just numb out, but this is when you need to read God’s word the most. It’s the very best source of hope and truth and reading it renews your mind. If you find this hard, why not use a daily devotional or bible reading plan to help you?

4. Keep a soft heart

It’s so easy to become angry and hard-hearted, towards God or towards other people when you’re struggling; but keep actively breaking up the hardness because soft soil is what allows new life to grow up.

For me, this generally means being quick to thank God when others are blessed, and quick to ask for help when I’m feeling bitter or struggling.

5. Stop comparing

Following on from the last point, one of the easiest ways that I find bitterness grows up is when I start comparing my life to other people’s, and complaining that it’s not fair. It may be understandable to feel this way, but it never makes me feel better. It only eats me up inside.

Besides, we don’t really know what it feels like to be in someone else’s shoes, or what silent struggles they might be going through too.

6. Focus on the preparation

What can you do now whilst you are in this pause, that won’t be possible when you are ‘there’? What preparation can you make? What positives can you glean?

Invest more time together in your relationship as a couple, get some of those house chores finished, invest some time developing a new skill, or get yourselves physically in good shape.

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