Can you remember a time when you were impatient waiting for something?  Maybe you can remember waiting in college for the posting of exam results, or maybe it was something more serious like waiting for the doctor to announce the results of testing.  For all of us, there are times in our lives were waiting can be troublesome and painful.

In Psalm 130, the Psalmist describes such as situation.  “Out of the depths I have cried to you, Yahweh. Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my petitions. If you, Yah, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with you, therefore you are feared. I wait for Yahweh. My soul waits. I hope in his word. My soul longs for the Lord more than watchmen long for the morning; more than watchmen for the morning.” (Psalm 130:5-6).

In this Psalm the word wait appears five times. While the Lord is developing our personal faith, He often delays answering us to deepen our trust in him.   At times this waiting can be very perplexing, as often we are dealing with something that is very important, such as an illness or, wayward child.  We often want the Lord’s help right immediately. 

Waiting on the Lord takes discipline and develops in our faith both perseverance and steadfastness. Throughout the Bible we see people who had to wait on the Lord while He was strengthening their faith. Abram, for instance, waited for years to have an heir despite things seemingly stacked against him.  Ultimately when God answered Abram’s prayer   

In the above Psalm, the Psalmist waits knowing God will be faithful in His time.  He knows that God will come through and this gives the Psalmist hope to endure even in the midst of suffering.

What dark night of the soul are you going through?  What prayers are you waiting for God to answer? In what way may the heavenly Father be developing your faith as you wait? The promises of God can be found throughout Scripture and we know that He will faithfully answer them.  The dawn is coming, either in this life or ultimately in heaven.   In the meantime, don’t give up hope but, like the “watchmen longing for the morning,” continue to watch for the deliverance from the Lord.  Know that he will be faithful.