Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act. Psalm 37:7 (NLT)
I seem to require frequent refresher courses in patience. This classroom has no walls, no ceiling, because this course isn’t taught in a physical space. It’s a lesson that needs to be learned repeatedly in the classroom of everyday life. I thought I’d completed the course, even wrote an essay on patience. But somehow I keep returning to square one – in my daily life, emotional life, and spiritual life.
I wonder about God’s timing, His purpose, His plan. I ponder His ‘slowness’ to act. I consider those ‘unanswered’ prayers. I put unanswered in brackets because that’s how my human mind perceives it. Yet even though it seems God has forgotten about my prayers, nothing is further from the truth. God hears every word, knows every thought, and takes notice of every tear. He sees my shattered dreams, my broken heart, and my disappointments. He knows my deepest longings.
God bids me ‘be still’ and wait patiently. And while I wait, He’s hard at work, shifting everything into its rightful place according to His perfect plan. Which requires me to be still, trusting that He has heard my pleas and will act in His time and according to His will. My timing is not the same as His. But that’s okay because His plans are immeasurably better than anything I could ask or imagine. While I’m focusing on the here and now, He’s focusing on eternity.
Thought: “I do know that waiting on God requires the willingness to bear uncertainty, to carry within oneself the unanswered question, lifting the heart to God about it whenever it intrudes upon one’s thoughts. It’s easy to talk oneself into a decision that has no permanence – easier sometimes than to wait patiently.” – Elisabeth Elliot