DON'T WASTE YOUR WAITING

“But those who wait on the LORD
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.”
(Isaiah 40:31)

Has God given you a promise that you haven’t seen fulfilled? Has He quickened a dream to you that you’ve been waiting and waiting to see come to pass?

Waiting is very much a part of our natural life. A recent survey said that we spend about sixty minutes every day waiting—at red lights, in line at the store, on the phone because you’ve been put on hold—you know what I mean. Sixty minutes a day means I spend slightly over two weeks a year waiting!

I don’t know why I get so irked at waiting but I do. I don’t like waiting in lines and I don’t like waiting for a phone call or a letter. I especially don’t like to be late for an appointment or to have someone arrive late to an appointment they set up with me.

Patience is an issue with me, or rather, impatience is a problem and I really struggle in this area. I always try to look calm and cool on the outside but if I am forced to wait on something or someone, it really irritates me. It seems to me that if I’m made to wait, then I’m wasting my time. Working as an associate for many years, I’ve “wasted” a lot of time waiting for others.

Isaiah puts a whole different twist on this word. My mind says that waiting is a waste and yet Isaiah says that waiting is very much a key to receiving definite benefits.

The Hebrew word for wait that is used in Isaiah 40:31 does not mean to sit quietly in the corner and do nothing. In fact, waiting on the Lord is actually quite a busy time for the person waiting.

So what are the benefits of waiting? I see at least four things in this verse:

1. Renewal of strength. If muscles are not used consistently, they will lose strength, and the same is true in the spiritual realm. If we are not using what God has given us, the quality of what we have will dissipate. Renewal means to regain something that has been lost, to build it back up, to refresh it. Our renewal happens because we are exercising our gifts.

2. Growing in faith. Waiting is an act of faith. The Hebrew word for waiting is also translated hope and it means to eagerly anticipate or expect. It is the renewal of strength that allows the eagle to rise up and soar. Eagles are noted for their ability to catch the winds and soar to incredible heights. The strength of the wing muscles allows the eagle to do that. God wants His people to soar to new heights of personal faith and that can only happen as we are renewed and grow in Him.

3. Gaining experience (maturing). Waiting is not meant to be down time. While the primary meaning of the word wait is “to eagerly look for” or to “anticipate,” it also means to “be bound together,” to be connected to. Our time of waiting is not to be a time of hopelessness but, instead, a time of hopefulness. It is as we involve ourselves in the things of God and as we are renewed in strength that we will learn to run and not be weary. That comes with maturity/experience.

4. Building stamina. Stamina and experience are not exactly the same but they live in the same neighborhood. Experience comes from going through a variety of situations and challenges and learning from them. We learn both what to do and what not to do. Stamina is having the capacity to see something through to the end.

When I started jogging in the middle ‘70s, I could hardly jog two city blocks before gasping for air and having to stop. When I quit jogging because of arthritis twenty-five years later, I would run almost every day for 45 minutes to an hour and on some days for 90 minutes to two hours. I would be tired but not winded…that’s stamina.

Don’t waste your waiting! His timing is always perfect. He knows exactly where you are—and He has not forgotten you!

I’m writing this as I wait for my wife and daughters…they have initiated a lot of growth in me!