When God tells us to wait
The Lord is my light and my salvation—so why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble? When evil people come to devour me, when my enemies and foes attack me, will stumble and fall. Though a mighty army surrounds me, my heart will not be afraid. Even if I am attacked, I will remain confident. The one thing I ask of the Lord—the thing I seek most—is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, delighting in the Lord’s perfections and meditating in his Temple... Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord. Psalm 27:1-4, 14
Waiting on the Lord involves praying and anticipating for His answer. The reason why waiting is not easy is because we tend to become impatient and desperate in our desire that our needs be met. There will be times that there is no obvious answer to our request, yet He prompts us to remain faithful, trusting Him even without knowing when or how He will resolve our situation. This means that we need to demonstrate humility as we live out our faith. Abram demonstrated this humility and faith when He was asked by God to leave Ur and go to a place he does not know (see Genesis 12). There are moments that all God asks of us is to submit to Him with the recognition that there is nothing we can do except to obey until further instructions come. Solomon is aware that God has a perfect plan for each of us (Ecclesiastes 1-3). It is true that God allows us to make our own choices. But there will be times that we get conflicted as to ascertain His will. When this happens we have to pray and ask Him to help us that we would rather obey His will than to find ourselves at a lost because we insisted on following our own selfish desire. This is why believers are cautioned to not rely on one’s own choice in figuring out solution. You will discover that as soon as you begin to manipulate your circumstances by proceeding to your reliance on self, you undermine His plan. This is what the Psalmist admonished the readers from our text. The challenge for us is to continue to be calm and quiet in challenging circumstances and “wait patiently for the Lord.” When you decide to wait for His will, you will notice that your worries and fears are overcome by courage. People around you will offer advice about your condition and you might be tempted to listen even without clear guidance from God and His word. Fear of criticism from others is usually the reason why believers get out of God’s will. There is a tendency to proceed rather than wait patiently for the Lord. You must be willing to be patient and firm when God is telling you to wait.
Blessings,
Noel De Guzman
www.my-wbc.com