v. 21 – waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.

Devotional:

What are you waiting for?
Let’s go!
Why does everyone move so slow?
Lord, where are you?
We need to get it together and get things done!
Why wait until tomorrow to do what can be done today?

I don’t know about you, but waiting is averse to my personality due in large part to the culture of the day. We like fast, we want things when we want them, and we don’t want to wait to get them. So often, though, we miss out on the beauty of the process the Lord has us in because we are in such a hurry to get to the destination we believe we deserve.

Thankfully, the Lord is patient with us. “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).

He is taking His time as He is reconciling all things unto Himself (2 Corinthians 5:19). He knows what we don’t know, and He can see what we can’t fathom (Isaiah 55:8-9). How many prayers have you prayed in your life that you are now thankful God didn’t answer or that He answered differently than you thought He should at the time? I believe one of the reasons the Lord has placed patience at the center of living a full life is because He wants us to want Him and waiting for Him reminds us we aren’t Him and we need Him. It is God’s grace toward us that He would make us wait, and it is His mercy on us to be present with us in the waiting.

In his masterpiece A Long Obedience in the Same Direction, Eugene Peterson writes, “A person has to get fed up with the ways of the world before he, before she, acquires an appetite for the world of grace.” How sweet it is to tire of this dying world while we long for the fullness of Jesus’ mercy to be made known to us in eternity. You can trust the Father today.

You can trust that He has you firmly in His grip and He is working out your glorification according to His divine plan.

You can trust that He is not done with you yet but that He will finish what He has started.

You can trust that He is merciful and good, that His love is steadfast and unfailing.

You can trust that He will never leave you, never forsake you.

You can trust that you may walk through the valley of the shadow of death, and He will make you lie down in green pastures as He restores your soul.

You can trust that He is not angry with you, but He is, in fact, in love with you.

Is your soul restless? Are you filled with tension and anxiety that bubbles just beneath the surface of your life? Are you dismayed with your circumstances or frustrated by what seems like a lack of response from the Lord? I have been there as well, so let me encourage you to slow down, take some time off, step away from trying to make things happen for yourself, and be alone with the Lord. There is no replacement that can produce more peace for the believer than long uninterrupted times spent alone with the Lord through prayer and the reading of His Word. It is in the places of calm and quiet that the soul connects to the patience of eternity and is reminded God is speaking His goodness into every corner of our lives. Rest today in His Word as you plan to spend time with Him.

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire. Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” (Psalm 46:1-3,7,9-10).

REFLECTION:

What makes waiting hard for you? What are you waiting for God to do? Write it down and spend a few minutes praying about it right now.