By: Quinnise Pettway
So, one of my daughter’s pastimes is to go to the park and play. My husband and I promised her that she could go to the park one particular day, but we told her that she would have to wait. We had some other tasks that we needed to get done around the house before we went to the park, but we were certainly planning to keep our word and take her.
What seemed like every two minutes, my daughter would ask, “is it time to go to the park yet?” We would reply with “no, not yet.” The more she asked, the more we explained that she would need to be patient and wait. It was at this point that she exclaimed, “Momma, I don’t want to be patient. I DO NOT LIKE BEING PATIENT!”
I had to chuckle when I heard my daughter say these words because she did nothing but remind me of when my Heavenly Father has made a promise to me or answered yes to one of my prayers, but I did not see the manifestation of the promise immediately.
How often do we get into a foot-stomping, arms flailing, voice hollering two-year-old tantrum with God when He tells us to wait or to be patient?
The promise will be fulfilled. The prayer has already been answered with a yes, but oftentimes we have to exercise patience until the promise comes to pass.
Psalms 27:14 states that we are to “Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.”
Romans 8:24 also states, “But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.”
Isaiah 40: 31 also says, “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”
The common themes in each passage are waiting, patience and assurance that our strength can be renewed during the wait.
While waiting can be quite a challenge, pray this prayer.
Heavenly Father, thank you for the fact that I can come to you with all of my cares and concerns. Thank you for always having a listening ear. Right now, I need your strength to endure as I strive to wait patiently on you for______________ . You remind me in James 1:3 “that the trying of my faith produces patience.” I know that you hear my prayers and I thank you in advance for renewing my strength and for the manifestation of your promises. You are good and worthy to be praised. In the name of Jesus, AMEN!
What is something you have been struggling to wait on the Lord for?
What type of attitude have you had during the wait?
This post is an excerpt from “A Glimpse of OUR FATHER: Lessons Parenthood Reveals for All of God’s Children,” Lesson 11
Learn more at https://aglimpseofourfather.com
