WAITING

WAITING

I do not know about you, but over the years I have not been good at waiting. It can be waiting in line at the grocery store or waiting in traffic -- I tend to be impatient. Yesterday's reading in STREAMS IN THE DESERT addressed this issue. Some of us also have trouble waiting for the Lord. What struck me was that waiting and patience seem to go hand in hand . . .

"I waited patiently for the Lord." Psalm 40:1 "Waiting is much more difficult than walking, for waiting requires PATIENCE (I knew it!), and patience is a rare virtue. We enjoy knowing that God builds hedges around His people, when we look at the hedge from the aspect of protection. But when we see it growing higher and higher until we can no longer see over it, we wonder if we will ever get out of our little sphere of influence and service where we feel trapped. Sometimes it is hard for us to understand why we do not have a larger area of service, and it becomes difficult for us to "brighten the corner" where we are. But God has a purpose in all of HIS delays for 'the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord' (Psalms 37:23).

Next to this verse, in the margin of his Bible, George Mueller made this note: 'And the stops too!' It is a sad mistake for someone to break through God's hedges. It is a vital principle of the Lord's guidance for a Christian never to move from the spot where he is sure God has placed him, until the 'pillar of cloud' moves. (Exodus 13:21)

Once we learn to wait on for the Lord's leading in EVERYTHING, we will know the strength that finds it HIGHEST POINT IN AN EVEN AND STEADY WALK. Many of us are lacking the strength we so desire, but God gives complete power for every task He calls us to perform. Waiting -- keeping yourself faithful to His leading -- this is the secret of strength. And anything that does not align with obedience to Him is a waste of time and energy. Watch and wait for His leading.

Must life be considered a failure for someone compelled to stand still, forced into inaction and required to watch the great, roaring tides of life from shore? No -- victory is then to be won by standing still and quietly waiting. Yet this is a thousand times harder to do than in the past, when you rushed headlong into the busyness of life. It requires much more courage to stand and wait and still not lose heart or lose hope, to submit to the will of God, to give up opportunities for work and leave honors to others, and to be quiet, confident, and rejoicing while the busy multitude goes happily along their way."

The greatest life is: 'after YOU have done everything, to stand." (Ephesians 6:13)

Powerful words for you and me to ponder today.

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