Waiting
Pastor Amy Lee
“Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for 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.”
Have you ever met anyone who loves waiting? So far, I have not.
Most of us do not appreciate waiting, though waiting is somewhat inevitable in our lives. We wait to see the doctor. We wait for the malfunctioned MRT to resume its running. We wait for the examinations to be over. We wait for the perpetual traffic jam to ease off. And we wait painstakingly for the release of hostages from Gaza.
Modern technologies in our world, such as real time translation tools, AI chatbots, instant bank transfer and smart transportation systems have conditioned us to expect speedy and instant outcomes.
This culture of immediacy has caused us to be impatient whenever there are delays, making it difficult for us to endure processes that require time and patience.
In the hustle and bustle of life, do you sometimes find yourself rushing through your personal Time Alone With God? Very efficiently running down your list of prayer items so that you can put a tick on your to-do list and get on to the next.
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This culture of immediacy has caused us to be impatient whenever there are delays, making it difficult for us to endure processes that require time and patience.
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We do not relish waiting. Unless we are waiting in the line for our quick fix of durians or waiting to lay our hands on the latest gadget in town, then that is a different story. When such happens, we would convince ourselves that waiting is needful because "good things must wait". Yet the truth is that waiting reveals our true priorities.
After His resurrection, Jesus appeared several times to his disciples over a period of 40 days. And He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem but to wait. To wait for the promised gift of the Holy Spirit. In Acts 2, we read about a group of 120 believers who chose to obey the Lord. They waited for 10 days and encountered a baptism of fire that radically changed their lives. Their waiting revealed their true priorities - their utmost love, deep devotion and sincere obedience unto the Lord.
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Yet the truth is that waiting reveals our true priorities.
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Today, we live in a world that values speed, efficiency and instant results. The world tells us to “hurry up” but the Lord exhorts us to “wait”.
In Isaiah 40:31, the Hebrew word for “wait” is qavah. The root word literally means “to wait”, “to look eagerly” or “to hope with expectation”.
Qavah is also related to the idea of a rope. We know that a rope is made up of several strands that are being twisted or braided together. So, when we wait upon the Lord (qavah), we are likened to a rope that is being placed under tension - pulled, twisted, stretched and tested by the Lord.
And as we continue to press on and qavah patiently with the Lord, our ropes are being stretched but they are not broken. In fact, we are being braided and intertwined with the Lord, building up a hidden strength that is waiting to be released. That is why Isaiah 40:31 tells us “but they who wait for 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.”
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Today, we live in a world that values speed, efficiency and instant results. The world tells us to “hurry up” but the Lord exhorts us to “wait”.
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As we qavah, this measure of strength from the Lord renews us from the weariness of life and moves us forward to continue to run our race.
I remember an incident some 2 years ago where the Lord spoke to me.
I was in the kitchen cutting 2 papayas all at one go. Whenever my dog Micky sees me in the kitchen cutting papayas, he will definitely be there, waiting. Usually, I will harden my heart and not give Micky papayas because papaya often upsets his stomach. So, I run by the rule that if Micky is still patiently waiting after I am done with the cutting, I would reward him. However, if he steps out of the kitchen and gets distracted with his toys, then he receives nothing.
That particular day, Micky waited patiently for a good fifteen minutes and so, he received the papaya. There and then, the Holy Spirit asked me “How desperate are you?”
My friends, it is our love for our Lord that will draw us to wait. It is our thirst, our hunger, our poverty, our need for Him and our dependence on Him that will compel us to wait. Waiting reveals the true priorities of our heart.
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As we qavah, this measure of strength from the Lord renews us from the weariness of life and moves us forward to continue to run our race.
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In Acts 3, we read of the account of a lame beggar who did one thing. This beggar waited. This beggar was lame from birth and everyday someone would carry him to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he would beg from those going into the temple courts.
Life wasn’t beautiful at all for this lame beggar even though he was grounded daily at Gate Beautiful.
But as he waited at the gate daily without fail, God turned his eyes towards him. And in God's timing and providence, the Lord brought forth a divine intervention into the beggar's life and he was healed.
King David often writes about “Waiting upon God”, which is one of the major themes in the book of Psalm. Qavah is so important and it will never lead us to disappointment. It will never be in vain. And I believe that waiting is not something that is taught, but caught, caught by a heart that desires Him more than anything else.
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Life wasn’t beautiful at all for this lame beggar even though he was grounded daily at Gate Beautiful.
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How desperate are you for the Lord? How authentic is your love for Him that can draw you daily to His gate?