Isaiah 40:31 NKJV – 31 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 has been referenced when people look for inspiration with waiting on God. The scripture reminds us to remain in faith while waiting on God’s promises. We see the scripture illustrated with an eagle on t-shirts and in paintings. But the word “wait” used in the context of this scripture is a verb. There is an action to “waiting”. It does not mean to sit and wait idly. It means to be active.
The Hebrew word for wait in Isaiah 40:31 is “Qavah”. It means to actively wait, to wait eagerly, to hope, expecting.
To proactively wait is to be serving. It is just like a server at a restaurant. The wait staff is there to serve you, to wait on you. So, what are we doing while we “wait” on God? How are we occupying our time while waiting? Are we serving God and serving others, or just sitting on the sideline occupying a pew?
The package is in the mail:
I remember when I was a kid; I would get excited knowing when a package or a letter was coming in the mail for me. Like getting presents on your birthday or at Christmas. I would get excited when a relative would call me and say, “watch out for the mail truck, I sent you a package”.
Knowing already that something is on its way builds your expectation for the arrival of that gift. It is more exciting when we do not know what is in the package or letter. You trust that the person sending you the package is telling you the truth because they would never try to build up false hope in you. So, knowing the mail is coming, every day when the postal worker shows up, you go running to the mailbox just anticipating that today is the day that your package arrives. Surely it will come today. But after the first few days of no package, you just think to yourself, well I will just check again tomorrow.
But what happens when the mail is running slow? We get impatient. We get discouraged when expected mail is delayed. We panic with thoughts like “when is it going to get here?”, “what if it got lost?” Or worse, “what if my relative never sent it to begin with, what if they just wanted to get me excited to play a joke on me?”
A week goes by, still no package. By now you are ready to give up. You are ready to say it will never be here. But then finally the day arrives when your package shows up. You are so excited that you forgot about all the time spent waiting. You got so much joy now that it did not matter that it took extra time for your mail to arrive because now it is finally here. Now you can enjoy your gift. Even though all along you knew it was coming, you did not expect it to take this long. But still after the discouragement and frustration, there it is, in your hands. Your relative was not a liar; they did what they said they were going to do. It just took a little longer than expected, but it did arrive.
Sometimes waiting on a package is like waiting on God. Waiting on Him for an answer, for His promises, for a breakthrough. Waiting, hoping, receiving. How about instead of using the word wait we replace it with the word pray? Praying, hoping, receiving. Or how about serving, hoping, receiving? Or giving, hoping, receiving? Be encouraged and do not give up on God. Keep “waiting” on Him. God has already given us the greatest gift we need, Jesus. But God continues to bless us. He still continues to lavish us. He still answers prayers. He still works miracles.
Proverbs 13:12 NKJV – 12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick, But when the desire comes, it is a tree of life.
2 Corinthians 1:20 NKJV – 20 For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.
Are you still waiting on God? Maybe He is still waiting on you too…
