The Gift of Waiting
We live in an instant world. Two-day shipping feels slow. Buffering videos irritates us. Waiting in line for five minutes seems unreasonable. And yet God, in His infinite wisdom, often asks us to wait—for answers, for healing, for a breakthrough, for clarity.
What if waiting is not God’s delay but His generous gift?
What if the waiting room is actually the classroom—where we learn what we could never grasp in an instant?
Bible Verse
“Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.” – Psalm 27:14
This verse does not merely tell us to wait; it teaches us how to wait: with strength, courage, and hope-filled hearts. The Hebrew word for “wait” here is qavah, meaning to look for, hope, or expect. It is active, not passive.
It’s the farmer scanning the horizon for rain clouds, the watchman searching for the first hint of dawn. Waiting on God is not resigned acceptance; it is confident expectation.
Additional Scripture Reflection
“But those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” – Isaiah 40:31
Notice the progression: mounting up, running, walking. We often assume spiritual maturity means constant soaring, yet Isaiah places walking last—the ordinary, unglamorous, faithful step-by-step journey.
Waiting renews our strength not only for spectacular moments but for daily endurance. The promise isn’t that waiting removes difficulty; it is that waiting in God’s presence transforms us.
Eagles do not flap frantically. They spread their wings and ride unseen currents. Likewise, those who wait on the Lord learn to rest in His timing rather than exhaust themselves forcing their own.
Story
Ken’s Unexpected Chapter at 67
Ken spent forty years as a successful engineer. He raised three children and entered retirement expecting a quieter life. But at 62, after his wife passed away, he felt an unexpected stirring—a sense that God was not finished with him yet, though he could not name what came next.
“I thought my productive years were behind me,” Ken admits. “But I couldn’t shake the feeling that God still had something for me.”
He prayed and waited. One year passed. Then two. Then five. At 67, Ken was still waiting.
“I felt foolish,” he says. “My kids thought I should just enjoy retirement—play golf, travel. Here I was, nearly 70, sensing a calling but receiving no clear direction.”
During that season, a friend gave him The Art of Waiting by Henri Nouwen. One line stopped him cold:
“Waiting is not mere passive waiting; it is actively trusting that God is at work when we see nothing happening.”
Ken chose to steward the waiting differently. He volunteered at a community center, tutoring immigrant students in English and math. He mentored younger engineers from his former firm. He deepened his prayer life and learned to be faithful in small things.
At 68, a missionary couple visited his church and shared about their work building sustainable infrastructure in rural Africa. They needed someone with engineering expertise and cross-cultural sensitivity.
“It felt like every piece of my life—my career, my tutoring, even my grief—had been preparing me for this moment,” Ken reflects.
Today, at 71, Ken spends several months each year designing water systems and training local communities overseas.
“The 62-year-old me was not ready,” he says. “I had skills, but not the patience, humility, or dependence on God this work requires. The waiting stripped away my need to be impressive and taught me to be available.”
Ken now sees those five years not as a delay, but preparation.
“I thought my best years were over,” he says. “Turns out, God was just getting started.”
Reflection
Ken’s story reveals a hard but holy truth: God’s delays are not denials—they are development. And God’s timeline does not retire when we do.
Henri Nouwen reminds us that spiritual life is fundamentally about learning to wait. Our culture has lost the capacity to wait, and in doing so, we have lost something essential to our humanity. Waiting teaches us to discern the difference between our desires and God’s will, our plans and His purposes. Ken’s five years were not wasted time; they were formation, especially powerful in a season when culture said his formation was complete.
Elisabeth Elliot, in The Path of Loneliness, writes about the sacred aloneness that often accompanies waiting. God sometimes isolates us not to punish us, but to gain our undivided attention. In Ken’s waiting—especially amid grief—he confronted puzzling questions: Was his worth tied to productivity? Could he receive a new calling later in life? Was he seeking significance or surrender? According to Elliot, such questions can only be answered in the wilderness.
Jerry Sittser, in A Grace Disguised, explains how loss and waiting can enlarge our souls. Pain, he says, can make us either bitter or better. What matters is not what is not happening to us, but what happens in us. Ken’s growth in patience, humility, and dependence reflects what Sittser calls “grace disguised.” What looked like a sunset was actually a dawn.
Timothy Keller notes that our deepest spiritual breakthroughs often come not in spite of waiting, but because of it. When God seems slow, He is often doing something deeper than we requested. Ken wanted clarity; God was forming a servant.
Scripture is filled with waiting: Abraham waited 25 years for Isaac. Joseph waited 13 years between dream and fulfillment. Moses waited 40 years in the wilderness. David waited years between anointing and the throne. In every case, the waiting was not empty; it was incubation.
Practical Truths
1. Waiting is not wasted time. God is always working, even when we see nothing happening. The seed underground is still growing.
2. Character is formed in the waiting room. Patience, humility, trust, and dependence cannot be microwaved. They are slow-cooked virtues.
3. Steward the season you’re in. Don’t put life on hold while waiting for the next chapter. Serve, learn, grow where you are now.
4. Waiting reveals what we are truly seeking. Are we after God’s gifts or God Himself? The waiting room clarifies our motives.
5. God’s timing is often about preparation, not punishment. What we perceive as delay may be divine protection, ensuring we’re ready for what we’ve asked for.
Prayer
Faithful Father, teach us the sacred art of waiting. When we’re tempted to rush ahead or give up entirely, anchor us in Your perfect timing. Help us trust that You are working even when we see nothing changing. Give us grace to steward this season well—to grow, to serve, to deepen our roots while we wait for the fruit. May our waiting not be passive resignation but active, expectant trust in Your goodness. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Call to Connection
What are you waiting for right now? A job, a relationship, healing, a breakthrough, clarity, justice, restoration?
Share your waiting story: How long have you been waiting? What has this season taught you? Your testimony might encourage someone else in their wait.
Practice active waiting: This week, identify one way you can steward your time in waiting. Is there a skill to learn, a person to serve, a book to read, a relationship to deepen?
Pray for patience: Set a daily reminder to pray not just for what you’re waiting for, but for the grace to wait well.
Related Music
🎵 “While I’m Waiting” – John Waller I’m waiting, I’m waiting on You, Lord / And I am hopeful, I’m waiting on You, Lord / Though it is painful, but patiently I will wait.
🎵 “You Know Better Than I” – Broadway’s Joseph You know better than I / You know the way / I’ve let go the need to know why / For You know better than I
🎵 “In His Time” – Diane Ball In His time, in His time / He makes all things beautiful in His time / Lord, please show me every day / As You’re teaching me Your way
Facts & Research
On the Psychology of Waiting: Research from the University of California found that the ability to delay gratification (waiting) is one of the strongest predictors of success, emotional health, and life satisfaction. The famous “Marshmallow Test” demonstrated that children who could wait showed better outcomes decades later in education, health, and relationships.1
On Patience and Mental Health: A 2012 study published in the Journal of Positive Psychology found that patient individuals experience less depression, are more grateful, and have greater life satisfaction. The researchers concluded that patience contributes significantly to overall wellbeing and resilience.2
On Waiting and Spiritual Formation: According to research by the Barna Group, 67% of Christians report that seasons of waiting—whether for answers to prayer, healing, or life transitions—were pivotal moments in their spiritual growth. Participants noted that waiting taught them more about God’s character than immediate answers did.3
Further Reading
📖“The Path of Loneliness” by Elisabeth Elliot: Examines how seasons of isolation and waiting can become sacred spaces for encountering God’s purpose. Check here
📖“A Grace Disguised: How the Soul Grows Through Loss” by Jerry Sittser: A profound meditation on how suffering and waiting can enlarge our capacity for God and deepen our souls.
📖 “Walking with God through Pain and Suffering” by Timothy Keller: Explores how God uses difficult seasons, including prolonged waiting, to accomplish purposes beyond our immediate understanding. View on Amazon
📖 “Waiting on God” by Andrew Murray (Classic) A timeless guide to the practice of waiting in faith, with practical insights on how waiting transforms our relationship with God.
📖 Biblical Examples to Study:
- Genesis 12-21 – Abraham’s 25-year wait for Isaac.
- Genesis 37-50 – Joseph’s journey from pit to palace (13 years of waiting).
- Exodus 2-3 – Moses’ 40 years in the wilderness before his calling.
- 1 Samuel 16-31 – David’s years waiting between anointing and the throne.
- Luke 2:25-38 – Simeon and Anna’s lifetime of waiting for the Messiah.
Footnotes
- Mischel, W., et al. (1989). Delay of gratification in children. Science, 244(4907), 933-938.
- Schnitker, S. A. (2012). An examination of patience and well-being. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 7 ( 4), 263-280.
- Barna Group. (2018). “The State of Spirituality.” https://www.barna.com/research/state-spirituality/