waiting temporarily

And now, O Lord, for what do I wait?

My hope is in you.

Psalm 39:7

The message of this psalm gives a unique perspective on waiting on God. The overall theme of Psalm 39 is the brevity of life. Our existence on this planet is a spark’s flash in comparison to the enduring sunshine of eternity. All of a life is a mere exhale. A brief walk through this song of David’s gives us insight into this question on waiting on the Lord.

The psalm begins with Determination and Desperation to Dull a Dialogue. David determines not to say the wrong thing to the wrong people. Some temptation to sin with his tongue has come to him (Psalm 39:1). But the situation he was struggling with also had a component of growing desperation as he kept his mouth literally shut. And finally David could stand no more, but carefully directed his words to the right place (Psalm 39:2-3).

The psalm then moves to a Call to Consider the Cursory Character of Life. David speaks. He breaks his silence with a prayer for God to make known to him the measure of his days and the fleeting nature of his mortality. And in that knowledge, he realizes all of human history is but a breath exhaled before the eternal God (Psalm 39:4-6)

From there the song turns to a final section. David’s prayer is a Personal Petition for Perfect Peace. David resolves to wait for hope to come from God (Psalm 39:7). God will deliver from sin (Psalm 39:8). God will discipline in love and rebuke (Psalm 39:9-11). God will bring peace even in our temporary tears (Psalm 39:12). God will bring a smile before we die (Psalm 39:13).

There are two “selah” pauses strategically in this Psalm (Psalm 39:5, 11) — both of them at the attention-grabbing line of poetry: “surely all mankind is a mere breath.” In the final summary, we are all sojourners, travelers, guests in this hotel of life, not permanent residents here, instead looking to God for our eternal home as we journey toward Him (Psalm 39:12). The conclusion in terms of what it means to the subject of waiting on God? All waiting is focused on the vivid hope of our destination to be with God in eternity. All times of waiting point there. Even if we hope for direction still in this life, it is only as a travel stop on our journey. We wait AND we travel. We wait AS we travel. But our destination is the thing. That is the hope. And the destination is vastly greater than the mere exhale of our existence!

It is You, O Lord

But for you, O LORD, do I wait;

it is you, O Lord my God, who will answer.

Psalm 38:15

It is for You

     O Lord

          that I wait

Help me look

     only to You

          as I pray

Eyes away from circumstances

Heart turned away from controlling demands

Mind fixed on You for perfect peace

It is for You

     O Lord

          that I wait

It is You

     O Lord

          Who will answer

I must listen

     to Your Word

          and obey

Wants arranged by what You want

Will surrendered to Your will

Ready to do what You will show me

Only You

     O Lord

          will answer

And so I wait

waiting vs worry

Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;

fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,

over the man who carries out evil devices!

Psalm 37:7

Sin complicates waiting on the Lord. And in this psalm we are reminded that two sinful attitudes in particular can derail waiting in faith on God. We must guard our hearts, turn from attitudes that hinder faith, and wait patiently.

The first sin that will makes it impossible to properly wait is comparison to other people that leads us to worry. In this psalm, David observes that evil men who plot against him seem to get the upper hand and do quite well for themselves. They seem to be able to do whatever they want. They seem to get whatever they want. It doesn’t seem fair (comparison always has us falsely thinking God is unfair). And this gets his soul anxious. When that kind of comparison dominates our thinking, we wonder if it is worth trusting God at all. We doubt God’s goodness to us. We not only lose hope, but we may even think that God doesn’t see us or care about us. But nothing could be further from the truth.

There is a second sin we can fall into: anger at a situation in which we must wait. In Psalm 37:8 the command is to “refrain from anger, and forsake wrath”. Again this anger leads to anxiety at the end of verse eight. I have found myself caught in this particular trap more than I want to truly admit… many times over the last seven months, comparing my situation to that of others, and then getting pouty and upset as I observe people… overcome and overrun by my strong feelings and changed situation. I get anxious and angry over the slow pace of grief and pain. Especially if I think other people who I sinfully judge as “more sinful” than me seem to thrive. But the warning is this: “fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.” That kind of angry judgment is a very ugly sin in me.

Instead of comparison, worry, and anger, we must point our hearts to repentance and patient faith. God will not let evil prosper. And He will confront our own awful attitudes as we wait on Him. Look at the conclusion to this section in Psalm 37:9: “For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait on the LORD shall inherit the land.” God will always bless in our faith-focused waiting. Always! And so I will turn from my sinful comparison, anger, and worry. I will guard against them, not letting them gain a handhold on my heart. God will reward me in the wait! I know it! I trust Him! And what He has for me is well worth this soul-searching, faith-filled, humbling time of trust!

Waiting: the crescendo

Be strong, and let your heart take courage,

all you who wait for the LORD!

Psalm 31:24

There is background to this enthusiastic encouragement. Psalm 31 shows us how to wait with strength and courage. It is worth summarizing all of Psalm 31 to get to this powerful ending. This is the joyous crescendo that ends Psalm 31. We have to understand the other more plaintive melodies and rhythms that led David to compose this full orchestral blast of praise at the end.

MOVEMENT ONE: God redeems a life needing shelter (Psalm 31:1-5). This is the short opening to this symphony of praise. There are sad and slow tones as David cries out to God as his refuge, needing God’s deliverance. He needed a place of safety from attacks from enemies. And he found that God had led him even then. God did indeed save him as he committed his spirit to God. Verse five contains some of the last words of Jesus and is a prophecy fulfilled at His crucifixion. This is an intense trust in God the Redeemer, and points us all the way to the cross where Jesus secures us safely in His sacrifice. “Into Your hands I commit my spirit.” God’s hands are shelter where we are safe.

MOVEMENT TWO: We can trust a God Who holds our times in His hands (Psalm 31:6-18). This is the longest part of the symphony. It moves in melodies and countermelodies, picking up and weaving together three major themes as the worship orchestra performs:

• God showers us in His grace and steadfast love (Psalm 31:7, 9, 16).
• God knows our affliction, grief, and suffering (Psalm 31:7, 9, 10-13).
• God controls our times and circumstances, making Him worthy of our trust (Psalm 31:14-17).

MOVEMENT THREE: Love the God Who saves you as you wait! (Psalm 31:19-24). God is abundant in His goodness to us (Psalm 31:19). God covers us constantly with His presence as we seek His perspective and power (Psalm 31:20). God shows His steadfast love to bring wonder in the waiting (Psalm 31:21). God is to be loved by His saints (Psalm 31:23). God preserves His faithful ones (Psalm 31:23). God humbles the proud (Psalm 31:23).

So as the song moves from our need to call us to trust in a trustworthy God, it compels us in relationship to love Him. We can find then that waiting on the Lord is a good task. We can be strong because Jesus is already a strong Savior Who committed to us and the Father by His sacrifice. We can take courage because God already holds our times firmly in His hands. God sets our lives safely on the Rock of our Salvation. We wait on Him as we wait in Him and having sung about His redemption and sovereign control, we can confidently love God as we wait.

faith to wait

Wait for the LORD;

be strong, and let your heart take courage;

wait for the LORD!

Psalm 27:14

This four word command at the beginning and at the ending of this verse gets my attention. It is a call to wait on God, a command to look to Him, an order from God to be patient for God. It feels impossibly difficult to manage. And in the middle of the strong command to wait are two other commands that feel equally difficult to follow as I am trying to wait.

BE STRONG. How can a person just “be strong”? It’s like telling a sick person “Get better”. Really? Duh! Of course I don’t want to be sick! Of course I want to trust God! For those waiting on God, of course we want to be strong! But how? How can my soul strongly wait for what it wants most of all but does not , as yet, have? This command to be strong has to have a root somewhere. It needs an anchor. It needs more than just my willpower. 

TAKE COURAGE. Where will my heart get this courage? It seems equally implausible that I can muster this up by waiting alone. The root meaning of “courage” in Hebrew means both to withstand (like weathering a storm) and to maintain (like staying on course). How does my heart withstand what seeks to deter me from waiting on God? How can I stay at it for as long as it takes?

The answers to all these questions that come to me as I read Psalm 27:14 are answered when I read and understand Psalm 27:13:

I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living!

I can wait with faith. Because I believe God, I can wait. Because I trust Him I will find strength. Because I will see Him now, and find Him at work in me while I yet live, I can have the courage to keep waiting, keep trusting, keep knowing God’s goodness for me. FAITH is what it takes to WAIT. I believe God… so I will wait for Him.

A reminder about the God upon Whom we wait

May integrity and uprightness preserve me,

for I wait for you.

Psalm 25:21

The final request of Psalm 25 is for God to keep David, to preserve the king of Israel as God also redeems the nation from trouble (Psalm 25:22). And in the middle of this prayer request David commits to waiting on the Lord. Even when we ask what we know it be God’s will, we must still often wait. We may want to ask “why” this is so. But to ask so may betray improper motivations on our part. If we HAVE to know why, we really aren’t waiting well are we! It is the wording of verse 21 that makes me draw the conclusion that needing to know why we wait is not truly waiting. Let me explain what leads me there.

David asks for integrity and uprightness to watch over him. The question becomes: Whose integrity and uprightness is doing the watching? Is it David’s own character so that he earns the favor of God, or is it purely the integrity and uprightness of God Who will provide the preservation? I believe it is God’s character that David longs to preserve him while he waits. Here is why I believe that FROM THE TEXT…

1. David knew that sinners brought shame by their actions, and no person that waits on God is put to shame (Psalm 25:3). Therefore it is God’s character that matters in the waiting. His sinful condition would only shame him.

2. All along in this psalm there are strong appeals for God to do what only He can do. David wants to know God’s ways and paths (Psalm 25:4), God’s truth (Psalm 25:5), God’s mercy (Psalm 25:6), God’s steadfast love and goodness (Psalm 25:7), God’s faithfulness (Psalm 25:10), God’s friendship (Psalm 25:14), God’s grace (Psalm 25:16), and God’s deliverance and rescue (Psalm 25:20). Thus in keeping with the direction of the song, David is looking to God’s integrity (moral strength) and uprightness (moral perfection) to keep him as he waits.

3. David confesses sin all throughout this song. It CANNOT be his own moral character he hopes to preserve him. He doesn’t have any! He is not extolling his own obedience. He is begging for God to forgive, keep and save (see Psalm 25:7, 11, 18). Sinners plead for God’s integrity and righteousness. We have none of our own!

O God,

In my waiting, I throw my soul’s need upon Your holiness, Your perfection, Your goodness. I know with confidence You will not let me down. Forgive me for my own self-pity, for narrowly thinking You owe me something because I have endured “so much”. No, the truth is, even in my troubles, I am often sinning. I need Your righteousness to preserve me! I am at his moment kept in the perfect, loving, omniscient, all-powerful care of my soul’s only Preserver! And in confidence in You, I will wait. May Your integrity and uprightness preserve me!

Amen

truth that empowers the wait

Lead me in your truth and teach me,

for you are the God of my salvation;

for you I wait all the day long.

Psalm 25:5

O God,

I pray this prayer as I begin thinking about what it means to wait. Lead me in Your truth. Teach me. You are my salvation, Lord Jesus!

Amen

As I explore the message of this bit of ancient song, I reflect on how waiting on the Lord provides for my deepest needs. I wait for what will be yet to come from His hand. I rest in what I already have from Him. And this little verse in a psalm of praise reminds me of two precious truths for all who will wait. These two truths meet two great needs.

The first fact is that God teaches me His truth. In fact, in Jesus, God is the truth. He is all I need to know. Knowing Jesus and His ways supersedes any and all of my other perceived needs. Even when I don’t quite believe it, I need truth. I need to be taught. Jesus is both my Truth and my Teacher. Be my soul’s Rabbi, Lord Jesus and lead me in the truth while I continue to wait for what I am trusting in You to teach me!

The second truth is that God saves me… He alone is my salvation. Why wouldn’t I wait for Him as long as it takes? I was saved when I first believed the good news of salvation: that Jesus died and rose again to save my soul from hell. I am being saved as I believe and follow Him, an ongoing experience of rescue as I turn from known sin to follow my Great Savior. I will be saved forever, united completely with Christ, with all the redeemed (especially those I am separated from by death), destined for eternal life in a new heavens and a new earth, the home of righteousness! That is worth believing, serving, living for, and waiting for!

With these two truths in mind, I can wait. David was content to wait if it took “all day long”. And those who are led in God’s truth, who rejoice in the God of their salvation, look to Jesus as they wait, knowing all the good they have in Him, believing all the good to come in the waiting, and hoping for all He has for them after the waiting!