Waiting for God's Timing

"The Lord is good unto them that wait for Him to the soul that seeketh Him.  It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord."  
-Lamentations 3:25-26

Waiting....Not something I like to have to do.  Imagine you are standing at the back of a long row of people waiting for the checkout lane in the local grocery story.  Or maybe you are running late to an appointment, and you get caught in a traffic jam.  Patience! There's a reason it's called a virtue!  While these little examples can put a grin on our faces for those of us who have experienced them, what about the big things?  There's life decisions - decisions that affect your future life, happiness, and well-being, in short, the direction of your life.

I remember waiting to go to college, it seemed like the time would never be right!  If I would have started college at the time when I wanted to (and thought I was ready) I would be a Junior by now, but I would have missed out on the plan that God had for me all along!

There are greater things than what I've mentioned.  What about waiting for heaven?  We all long for something better, to be reunited with love ones who have passed away, to live eternally where there will never be any pain, and to have all our tears will be wiped a way. Most of all, we long to see our Redeemer, the Savior who is our best Friend and to be able to cast our crowns at His feet saying, "He died for me!"  Patience, waiting....

"The Lord is good to them that wait for Him...."  The interesting thing I find in this verse is that it says we should wait for the salvation of the Lord.  Don't we all have salvation already?  Colossians 1:13&14 speaking of our Heavenly Father says, "Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness and has translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son.  In whom we have redemption through His blood even the forgiveness of sins."  "Hath delivered" = past tense.  "We have redemption" = present tense.  So what are we to make of this?  Why do we have to wait for our salvation when we are already saved?

Let me give you some examples of the omniscient God we serve.  First of all, He told Jeremiah, "Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I anointed you as a prophet to the nations."  Jeremiah 1:5.  Just as assuredly as God knew Jeremiah, and had a plan for his life, He knows each of us!  You see, before I knew what I wanted to be when I grew up, before I knew how to study the Bible, God had already planned where I would go through the SALT program (school of Evangelism at Southern).  Before my mom planned on helping out with an evangelistic series over twenty years ago, God had already planned for my dad to be there so they could meet each other.  Before my dad ever felt called to ministry, God already knew what conference president would hire him.

Could it be that although God give us the promise of salvation now, we are still waiting for the ultimate fulfillment?  Maybe God is trying to tell us that we can have perfect rest, assurance, joy, and peace as we wait on His perfect timing to reveal His salvation in our lives.  But notice here, it's not that we don't have an answer, it's just that we are not yet ready to receive His answers!  He says that we can be "confident of this very thing that He which hath begun a good work in you shall perform it unto the day of Jesus Christ."  Philippians 1:6

You see, everything in our lives is predicted by God, nothing slips the notice of His eyes.  Our future is not something vague. We are not left to wander around through life without a map, without a plan.  The answer to our prayer is not something far-off in the distance. Praying and waiting on God isn't some mythical formula; it is predictable, it's something-Someone- that we can stake our future, our entire lives upon!!  It's just a matter of timing.  "He hath made every thing beautiful in his time...."  Ecclesiastes 3:11.  How beautiful!  What a God we serve!   We have Someone who knows when we are ready for the ultimate fulfillment of His promises.  He knows when we are ready for each of the new steps we have to take in life. Where I would push ahead, he holds me back and whispers "wait", where I would be afraid to plunge forward and work for Him, He says "trust me, you can do all things through My strength."

I am reminded of a story in the Bible where Daniel was given a vision regarding what would take place in the future.  The vision made him sick, because he did not know what the interpretation was.  Daniel had been fasting and praying. He says "while I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel....touched me about the time of the evening oblation.  And he informed me, and talked with me, and said O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding.  At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to shew thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision."  Daniel 9:21-23  From the very beginning of Daniel's prayer, the angel Gabriel had been sent forth to answer his prayer and give him wisdom and understanding!

Whatever you are waiting for in your life, whatever you are praying for now, know that we serve a God who cares!  Each of us is a beloved child of God, as much as Daniel was.  He says to us "The Lord hath appeared of old unto me saying, yea I have loved you with an everlasting love, therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn thee."  Jeremiah 31:3.  We are given such beautiful promises from the Word of God!  He tells us:  "And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear."  Isaiah 65:24.  "And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying this is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.  Isaiah 30:21

God is the Creator, our Master Designer, He has the blueprint for our lives, and all He is waiting is for us to do is give him the paint brush!!

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."  

-Jeremiah 29:11