"I waited patienly for the Lord, and he inclined unto me and (he) heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and (he) set my feet upon a rock, and (he) established my goings. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise to our God...Blessed is that man that man that maketh the Lord his trust "
Psalm 40:1-4
A few weeks ago my heart was breaking, and I was growing through a tough trial. I was reading this passage of Scripture, which has always been a dear and precious one, and something hit me. I was waiting on a person, I was not waiting on God.
In this world full of sinners, in which you and I are both included, we often find that we are constantly dealing with problems caused by said sinners. So often I blame them, and rightly so, and "sit around" waiting for them to make it right, or stew, or consider several things I could say or do to make it better. We all have people in our lives like that right now. We are dealing with wayward children or spouses, or faulty parents or in-laws, or inconsiderate friends, or even a socialist president. And don't you find, as I find, that I am waiting on them? I am waiting on them to make it right, on them to grow, on them to confess and forsake, on them to love.
We are not to wait on people. We are to wait on the Lord.
The Lord works on people. He is the one with both the power of His Word and the power of the Holy Spirit, brings people to change: to make things right, to grow, to confess, to forsake, to love. Only He and He alone. When someone makes a wrong choice, it is not in my power or area of judgment to change them. I am a supporter of both bearing burdens and loving confrontation, as well as fasting and prayer, but dear readers, those things will never change a person. I may be a catalyst, but me thinks myself too powerful, too special if I think my actions caused that change.
Waiting is not easy. David was crying. He was in a pit, in the miry clay, slipping, falling. He was despairing, disponding, and he had to wait. He never said how long he had to wait, but he was faithful to wait for the hand of the Lord - the hand of the Lord to lift him up, to set him on a rock, to establish him, to put a new song in his mouth. Such a song, that those that saw where he was and where God placed him saw it too, and with fear and awe, trusted in the Lord as well.
Who am I to think that I have that type of power? Power to lift someone up, to establish them, to change the song of their heart and therefore their mouth? And even if I did have that power, would not I get the glory, and not my precious, almighty God?
Those that wait on the Lord are blessed - the are happy, they are content. Waiting on the Lord puts us in a place of peace, of security, of being established.
He also promises to strengthen our breaking hearts as we wait. "Wait on the Lord, be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart" Psalm 27:14 He never promises an immediate answer, of immediate solutions, only the courage and strength to get where we need to be as we wait for His hand to work in both our lives and in the lives of others around us.
