The Waiting Game

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.
Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love
    and with him is full redemption.
He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins.
Psalm 130:5-8

A couple of summers ago, I got stuck pulling an all-night drive to get home. The early part of my unplanned night-shift was kind of exciting and adventurous, but the later it got the less exciting it was, and my body screamed for sleep. The time I felt the most tired was just a short time before dawn. I can see this playing out in the verses above.

After crying out to the Lord for help, David’s whole being waited for God to show up. He compared it to a watchman who stayed up all night to protect the city. We all have change we want to see happen, areas where we want to see God move, prayers we want to see answered. We long for God to move like the watchman longed for the sun to come up. Waiting is hard, and it’s easy to give up.

The Hebrew word used here for waiting is qavah and it literally means "to collect or twist things together". In context it basically means to “stay put as long as it takes in a posture of expecting something to happen”. It’s a stubborn refusal to give up and to stake your claim on the character and promises of God. It’s all about determination and expectancy.

This kind of waiting is one of waiting in faith. It’s like saying, “Lord, I know You are going to do something if I just hold on. In faith, I approach You respectfully and repentantly—then I cry out from my lowly and dependent position. I’m stuck! But You can do something about my situation. I’m symbolically packing my backpack—because I believe You hear my sincere and desperate cry, and I believe You are about to move and I want to go along for the ride.”

Let me be clear. We can’t demand things from God, and we need to pray for our will to align with His. But, God wants us to wrestle in prayer and develop a holy determination to see His will done in our lives and in the lives of those around us.

Notice how David puts his hope in God’s word. God is a promise-keeper. He’s not a dead-beat-dad who makes empty promises. He means what He says, and says what He means.

Let’s stand firm in a posture of determined prayer as we trust God’s word and God’s character during the rest of this NINE/30. You may be weary and tired, but this may be the dark tiring time just before dawn!