Sitting in God’s Waiting Room

Sitting in God’s waiting room is not easy. Patience wears thin after a time, and our human bent starts tapping its toe. C’mon, c’mon already!

Bring my prodigal home.

Restore my marriage.

Provide finances to pay the bills.

Heal my body.

Give me clear direction for the big decision looming.

Fix what’s wrong with the world.

We are finite beings so we often view our circumstances as on a finite timeline. The clock ticks, and we grow restless and anxious. We begin to doubt whether God hears our prayers. We question whether He cares. We toy with the thought of yanking control from His hands, as though we could bring about the best outcome without His help.

When we find ourselves sitting in God’s waiting room and patience wears thin, let’s remember the Old Testament character, David.

David knew how to wait well

David was anointed as king, but he had to wait until God gave the go-ahead to assume the throne (1 Samuel 16:13). In the meantime, the jealous King Saul hunted him. David ran for his life and hid in caves. When the opportunity came to retaliate, David resisted (1 Samuel 24:6-7). He waited on God to put him on the throne in His way and in His time. Now that’s patience and integrity, right?

Over and over, and throughout a variety of circumstances, the psalmist waited on God to answer his prayers and come to his rescue. Banking on God’s promises, he hoped for a good outcome without losing faith.

David compared himself to a night watchman scanning the horizon for the first glimmer of dawn.

“I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.” (Psalm 130:5 NIV)

The watchmen didn’t know the exact moment the morning light would appear, but they knew beyond a doubt that it would crack the darkness. It was just a matter of time. And so they waited and watched for the sun’s first gleam.

“Wait on the Lord is a constant refrain in the Psalms,” wrote J.I. Packer in Knowing God, “and it is a necessary word, for God often keeps us waiting. He is not in such a hurry as we are, and it is not his way to give more light on the future than we need for action in the present, or to guide us more than one step at a time. When in doubt, do nothing, but continue to wait on God. When action is needed, light will come.”

To be clear, sitting in God’s waiting room is not a passive activity.

It may feel sometimes as though we’re doing nothing, but in reality, it takes our whole being to resist the temptation to rush ahead of God’s timing. It requires courage and strength and faith to remain patient and hopeful as we wait on the Lord to answer our prayers or rescue us.

Never give up, my friend. Sitting in God’s waiting room is not easy, but hang onto hope in knowing that God hears your prayers, and yes, He cares. As sure as the glimmer of dawn will come, so He will come. It’s just a matter of time.

Adapted from Fresh Hope for Today: Devotions for Joy on the Journey. Copyright © 2022 Grace Fox.