Waiting is hard work! We wait for God to answer our prayers. We wait for God to bring about change. We wait for our hearts to change or for others’ hearts to change.
Jesus told the disciples that He would raise again in three days. Did they wait? No! They went fishing. After He was resurrected, He met them for forty days. Then again, He called them to wait. “Do not leave Jerusalem but wait for the gift my Father promised which you heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days, you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:5). This time they were faithful to wait, and the result of their waiting was amazing. They were filled with the power of the Holy Spirit.
When Jesus told them to wait, do you think they knew what to expect? They had never been baptized with the Holy Spirit before. On top of that, Jesus left them for a second time. But somehow, this time they patiently waited. Perhaps, the encounters they had with Jesus after the resurrection gave them the faith to listen and patiently wait to see what God would do next.
Is there something you are waiting for? An answer to your prayers? A change in someone’s heart or behavior? Don’t give up! Keep praying. Keep waiting. If it is something God has put on your heart to patiently wait for, He is faithful and will bring it to pass. But waiting is not doing nothing. It involves continuous prayers. God may want you to fast. He may want you to do something in preparation for what is to come.
Sometimes God wants us to show faithfulness in the little things before He will answer our prayers. Ask Him about this. Has He already told you to do something, but You haven’t done it yet? Take that step and more of God’s blessing will follow.
Waiting looks different in every situation. Jesus told the disciples to go to Jerusalem and wait until the Holy Spirit came. Ask God what your waiting is to look like. What is your next step?
-Sue Corl
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