Waiting on the Lord

Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD. Psalm 27:14 KJV
One of the most challenging and perplexing aspects of prayer is the period of time between the request and the answer. That phase is commonly referred to as waiting on the Lord. When prayers are answered quickly, the waiting period is brief and buoyed by an expectant satisfaction and relief in having made the request. But when the answer lingers and the waiting period begins to slowly drag on, waves of doubt and impatience gather strength as they buffet the heart of the pray-er. It could be said that waiting on the Lord is the test between the request and God’s best.
This critical time of waiting on the Lord is often characterized by confusion and weariness. And yet it is in this waiting process, which God purposely allows, that prayer does its deepest, most beneficial work in the heart of the pray-er. As much as we would like to avoid it, it is the necessary path God provides to purify our desires and prepare us to move from promise to fulfillment.
It is understandable therefore that there are many scriptures extolling the virtues of waiting on the Lord. Waiting upon the Lord and hoping in the Lord are frequently linked and sometimes even used interchangeably. “We wait in hope for the Lord,” the psalmist tells us “he is our help and our shield.” (Psalm 33:20 NIV) “Praise awaits you, our God.” (Psalm 65:1 NIV) And “I wait for the LORD, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope.” (Psalm 130:5 NIV)
In the waiting process hope in God’s character and His word is like the oxygen that keeps us breathing words of praise while we wait for God to answer. We can see therefore how critical it is in waiting for God to answer our prayers to maintain a lifeline to hope by reminding ourselves of God’s past faithfulness and many promises.