When the Wait Feels Endless
By Dean Collins
Sometimes waiting takes a minute. And sometimes waiting takes a really long time. I memorize a few verses of scripture each year. I memorized Micah 7:7 two or three years ago when I was in a season of waiting. I am still waiting. Like you, I seldom get the instant or quick results I want.
It’s odd how waiting can be intense, regardless of whether your wait has a definite timeline or an unlimited one. A child who goes to bed on Christmas Eve may feel like Christmas morning will never get here, but in reality that wait is only a few hours. Parents in the second or third trimester may think the birth of their child will ever get here, but babies are always born sometime around the nine-month mark.
Micah prophesied of the coming judgement of God on the northern and southern kingdoms before the Assyrian captivity and, of course, ahead of the Babylonian captivity and exile. And while Micah spoke of the impending judgment of God’s people, he also spoke words of hope that God would ultimately bring restoration and renewal through a coming King because God is compassionate and always keeps his promises. The ending of Micah reads:
“Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love. He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. You will show faithfulness to Jacob and steadfast love to Abraham, as you have sworn to our fathers from the days of old.”
Micah’s prophetic words were true, though at the time seemed far away to those who heard them. The remnant did survive their pending judgment, the Assyrians, the Babylonian exile, and a King greater than David was born in Bethlehem, lived a sinless life, died for the redemption of all of God’s creation, and we are now waiting for King Jesus to return and complete his work of renewal and restoration. So once again, we as God’s children have seen promises kept yet find ourselves waiting and trusting that those who are working against us now will not, will never, have the final word. Only Jesus brings our waiting to an end, and by his grace and mercy he brings us peace forevermore.
So Father, today I pray with my brothers and sisters who are waiting for relief, waiting for answers, waiting for healing, and waiting for justice that we believe in your promises. We pray the words of Micah: “But as for me, I will look to the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me.” Father, thank you for your promise to hear us and to answer us according to your will. We trust you today and will not lean on our understanding but rather wait for your direction and intervention. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Your Time with God’s Word
Micah 7:7-10, 18-20, Hebrews 10:21-25 ESV
Photo by Pexels
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