August 2 - Waiting Wisely.

Psalm 27:14
“Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.”
 
When we do not have a clear yes or no in answer to something we have prayed and asked God for, we have two choices: proceed with caution not knowing the Lord’s will, or wait.
 
Our flesh wants action, but waiting involves being still without movement or proceeding ahead. Waiting is hard, but beneficial because it allows us to rely on God.
 
Psalm 46:10
“Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.”
 
David knew firsthand what it was like to wait. He was chosen to be king of Israel, but had to wait many years before he ascended the throne. Think of what all transpired while David waited for his time to come. A selfish tyrant held the very title David knew would one day be his, and this same man sought David’s life on more than one occasion. Saul’s actions forced David to hide in caves fearing that his days were numbered; yet, he knew God had promised him that one day he would be king. His many days of waiting allowed his character to be shaped in such a way that he was later called “a man after God’s own heart”.
 
What character is the Lord shaping in you while you wait? David could have chosen to be angry and discouraged in his days of waiting; but instead, he allowed God to use the waiting period to shape him into the man God wanted him to be. While he waited he was confident and expected the Lord to come through for him. He would not have been the same if it had not been for the trials and period of waiting that God chose to give him.
 
Waiting can produce confident expectation that God will provide. Though we may get discouraged, we can use the waiting period to allow God to create within us a confidence that only comes from trusting Him.
 
While we wait, we can use our time wisely by spending it with our Saviour. Time spent with the Lord is never wasted. Ask Him to give you grace in your times of waiting. Use your time of waiting wisely by spending it in His presence.
 
“Waiting requires sitting at the feet of our Saviour and exchanging our timetable for His.” June Kimmel
 
 
Bible Reading:
Nehemiah 5-6  |  Hebrews 10  |  Psalm 3