The Gift of Waiting

But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings as eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. Is. 40:31


The above verse is one of my favorites. I use it frequently in my blogs, in counseling and in encouraging myself. Normally, I will mention how some Biblical translations substitute the word “hope” for the word “wait” and that hope is an acronym for Heart Of Peace and Expectation.


More often than not, when we are waiting on the Lord to answer our prayers, to give us wisdom and guidance about a situation we face or just waiting in His presence, there are lessons that God wants us to learn. Perhaps He desires for us to grow in wisdom and knowledge. Maybe He wants us to learn to be more patient. Or He wants our relationship with Him to grow deeper. It could be that the timing is not right for His answer to be manifested. Regardless of the reason why the answer has not come, there is a reason we are waiting.

Advent is a season of busyness. We go to this party and that gathering, we sing Christmas carols, shop till we drop, bake and cook, decorate our homes and wrap gifts until the wee hours of the morning. I think we have lost the fact that Advent is a season of waiting. We are so busy running from one store to another, one party to another, we have forgotten that Advent heralds the coming of Christ. Just as an expectant mother anticipates, prepares and waits for nine months the arrival of her newborn, Advent is a period of anticipating, preparing and waiting for the birth of our Savior.

It is my prayer that in some small way, the blogs I have written during Advent have helped you to slow down for a few minutes each day and remember the Reason for the Season. As we look forward to tomorrow, may the birth of our Savior renew in you a Heart Of Peace and Expectation.

Come, thou long expected Jesus,
born to set thy people free;
from our fears and sins release us,
let us find our rest in thee.
Israel's strength and consolation,
hope of all the earth thou art;
dear desire of every nation,
joy of every longing heart.

Born thy people to deliver,
born a child and yet a King,
born to reign in us forever,
now thy gracious kingdom bring.
By thine own eternal spirit
rule in all our hearts alone;
by thine all sufficient merit,
raise us to thy glorious throne.

MARANATHA!

© December 2009