Our modern society has conditioned us to want what we want when we want it.

Wouldn’t you agree?

After all, we live in the age of instant gratification. You can order something online, and depending on where you live, you can receive it the same day or the next. We are certainly blessed with more opportunities than ever before to get what we need more quickly. 

In fact, when we discover it’s going to take more than a couple of days to get something, we’re frustrated and sometimes even angry. What do you mean it’s not going to be here for a couple of weeks?

This “get it now” mentality has carried over to our spiritual lives as well. After all, if Amazon can deliver my purchase in two days or less, shouldn’t God answer my prayer just as quickly?

I confess I’ve been frustrated and angry with the Lord sometimes because I feel like He doesn’t care when my prayers are not being answered quickly. However, He has been so gracious and kind to show me on occasion, not every time, the reason behind the wait. And if He doesn’t show me why I had to wait so long, He is always faithful to show me how He is growing and making me be more like Jesus.

Perhaps you’re in a season of waiting. Whether it’s waiting for God to intervene in a situation in your life, waiting to hear from God what your next move should be, or waiting for God to put an end to the craziness in this world, the Bible has many instructions about what we are to do in this time of waiting.

Three Things You Can Do While Waiting on God:

Ask God if you are the reason for the delay

Sometimes we are our own worst enemies. We can cause God to delay an answer to our prayers because we are not in a position to receive the answer He is going to give. Maybe there is an area of your life that needs to be refined before you’re able to receive His answer. Ask God to reveal anything you need to change about your life so that He can act.

Stay in constant communication with God

I’ll admit there are some times in my life when I’ve not stayed plugged in with God. I let the cares of my life that were seemingly going unhelped by my prayers take over and keep me from spending time with God. That just made the waiting even more difficult.

When I finally got connected with God again, I was able to experience peace, joy, and hope despite my circumstances. God used that time to prepare me for His answer.

Don’t give up meeting with God. You’ll find strength and endurance if you stay connected with Him.

Trust that God’s timing is best

This is a hard one. But it’s true. Waiting on God comes down to trust. Do we trust that He’s going to act in our best interest? Or are we willing to accept His answer is going to be for His glory and not ours?

There are several situations in my life where I have been waiting for years for an answer from God. However, I don’t give up hope. I trust that His timing is best even if it’s discouraging for me to wait so long.

To help you reflect on how to wait on God and how to do it well, I’ve created the February Scripture Writing Plan to include verses about waiting on God. You will be encouraged in your wait as you read and write out the verses.

Visit the Scripture Writing Plan page to download the current month’s plan. You will also have the opportunity to access the Scripture Writing Plan Archives to download plans with other topics.