If there’s anything a toddler can teach us, it’s this: waiting can be really hard. Unfortunately, we all have to do it sometimes. Today, I want to offer you some encouragement while you wait.
Our family is facing some pretty significant changes. The next few months will be times of transition, and to be honest, I’m not really sure how to prepare for parts of it.
After 10 years at home with my kids, doing freelance work and homeschooling, I won’t be with them all the time anymore. They’re going to school, and I can’t help wondering, “Where does that leave me?”
Questions like:
- What does God want me to do now?
- Do I need to find a job?
- What will I do when I’m actually alone every day?
Because the thing is: I know where my kids are going, but me? Not so much.
Fortunately, God knows the days ordained for me before one of them comes to be. (Psalm 139:16)
I might not know the path, but He does.
The problem is I have to wait for him to show it to me.
Please, raise your hand if you like waiting. Yeah, I didn’t think so. Waiting is seldom fun and often difficult to do. Sometimes, I find myself ready to jump at any option just to be able to say the decision has been made. I’m tempted to settle for something that might be good but is less than perfect.
Because God has a perfect will for me. For you, too.
Do you believe that? I hope so, and today, I’d like to encourage you to trust him as you wait so I thought I’d share some of the Scriptures that help me be patient and trust the Lord, not run ahead of him as I am often tempted to do.
This week, Psalm 27:14 helped calm my heart and relax my mind, commanding me to stop worrying and slow the search, to trust the one who has good plans for me. It says, “Wait on the Lord. Be strong and take heart and wait on the Lord.”
I needed the reminder so much I slapped it (a bit sloppily) on a page and posted it in my kitchen.
It may not be the best lettering (it’s not even MY best lettering), but every time I see it, I take a deep breath and relax.
God’s word and his wisdom has that effect on us, doesn’t it? When we’re facing uncertainty, the best thing we can do is fill our minds with truth because it never changes. God’s promises can give us peace.
18 Bible Verses to Encourage You While You Wait
Psalm 5: 3 – “In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.”
Lamentations 3:25-26 – “The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.”
Micah 7:7 – “But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.”
Psalm 130:5-8 – “I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning. Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him is full redemption. He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins.”
Psalm 40:1-3 – “I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the Lord and put their trust in him.”
Romans 26:24-28 – “For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But is we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. In the same way the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
Isaiah 40:30-31 – “Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
Psalm 145:13-15 – “The Lord is trustworthy in all his promises and faithful in all he does. The Lord upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down. The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time. You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.”
Isaiah 30:18 – “Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!”
Psalm 25:4-5 – “Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.”
Psalm 29:11 – “The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace.”
Psalm 37:5-6 – “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun.”
James 1:2-4 – “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
Psalm 84:5 – “Blessed are those whose strength is in you, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage. As they pass through the Valley of Baka, they make it a place of springs, the autumn rains also cover it with pools. They go from strength to strength till each appears before God in Zion.”
Psalm 139:1-16 – “You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise, you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely. You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,’ even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you. For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; you works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”
Take some time to meditate on these verses today. Consider how loved you are and know that the God who created all things created you, too. He has a plan for you, and you can trust him to carry his plans out.
Believe the words of Jeremiah 29:11, which says, “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Then, join Job in saying, “I know that you can do all things; no purpose of your can be thwarted.” (Job 42:2)
He will fulfill his plans for you! “Wait for the Lord. Be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord!” (Psalm 27:14)
I would love to hear from you today. How do you wait patiently for the Lord? What helps you to trust him each day? Share a comment or a verse!
Also, if you are facing decisions, check out this post: What to Do When You Don’t Know What to Do & The Secret to Decision Making
Now it’s time for Encouraging Word Wednesday! I hope you’ll join us this week!
Thank you for these verses. My family is waiting on the Lord for a response with my husbands work, and sometimes the waiting game gets overwhelming. I appreciate these thoughts!
Praying for your family, Charlie, as you move through this transition, and in particular that the Lord will grant you peace and courage as His will for you unfolds. I’m confident that you will continue to bring Him glory in all that you do. Thanks for sharing these wonderfully encouraging verses.
Waiting is the hardest thing for us humans to do, but so necessary in God! Change is always daunting but can bring new growth for all involved…
While I wait for healing from chronic health issues including chronic pain, spending quality time with the Lord is what I do…
You’re always welcome to drop by for a cuppa,
Jennifer