Your Turn is Coming Soon – Don’t despise your Waiting period

Have you ever noticed how when you are waiting for something to happen and it will usually seems like that exact thing you believing God for; is availing itself to everyone else except you? Say, you believing for a job, and it seems like everyone else around you has a job or are landing good jobs or great opportunities are coming their way. Maybe you believing for a husband or a wife – and seems like everyone around you is either married or engaged – And you probably wondering WHEN IS YOUR TURN COMING?

Or maybe you are hoping and praying to have children, start a relationship, get a job, a financial breakthrough, academic breakthrough, a good medical report, a change in life’s direction – but it’s all happening to everyone else except you. Has waiting become a burden than a blessing to you? Or are you just about to call it quits , throw in the towel? Then this devotion is for you 🙂

Waiting sometimes is not always the easiest and fun thing to do. To quite honest, Waiting especially for a long time will test you on every level. Waiting will test your patience, you meekness, your humility, your endurance, your kindness, your faithfulness, your commitment … etc. However, I’ve learned and still have to remind myself that it’s OK to wait on God – even if the answer takes a little bit longer to come than anticipated.

What happens is, there are some things that you will ask for and they will happen right away. But there are also others that will take a little longer to come to pass. We need to understand that sometimes God will delay manifesting answers to your prayer for your own good. Delayed answer to prayer may sometimes be God taking time to build the right character in you to sustain the blessing His about to bring forth in your life. Whatever, you are praying for – God knows the right time for it to come to pass in your life – So don’t get discouraged.

In the book of 1 Samuel, we are told of a barren woman named, Hannah. She was barren for a very long time. She was so barren that she began to receive mockery and taunting remarks because of her condition. It is written that after much prayer, God opened her womb and blessed her with a son whom she named Samuel – Because she had asked God for him. Hannah is a perfect example of what it means to wait on God faithfully, and how Great Rewards follows those who patiently wait on Him.

Here are 3 things I want us to learn from Hannah about how to deal with your Waiting period experiences

During your waiting period:

CHANGE YOUR HEARING – She didn’t listen to the negative voices around her – especially Peninnah

1 Samuel 6-7 (TLB)

Peninnah made matters worse by taunting Hannah because of her barrenness. ⁷Every year it was the same—Peninnah scoffing and laughing at her as they went to Shiloh, making her cry so much she couldn’t eat.

While in the waiting period you need to be VERY SELECTIVE as to whom you listen to and attend your ears to. If you listen to the wrong people – you will only get more discouraged, and potentially give up and stop waiting. Not everyone’s opinion about your circumstance/situation is worth your attention. So don’t allow the opinions of others to deter you from faithfully waiting on the Lord; and remaining in Him; however long it takes.

John 15:7 (NIV)

If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

Like Hannah, you need to learn to recognize which voices you are going to outright shut down and ignore completely. People see only what’s on the outside and make judgement based on your exterior condition – but God is not like man; He sees Your condition beyond your exterior – He see what’s on the inside. I believe when God saw Hannah – He looked beyond her bareness (exterior condition) –He saw the condition of her heart- He saw a heart sold out for Christ, He saw her relentless faith, her unwavering determination and strong belief in Him. Don’t lose hope on your dream or waver in your waiting simply because of what someone may have said out of ignorance to you or about you. The ONLY voice that matters in your life is that of God.

2. CHANGE YOUR FOCUS- Hannah FOCUSED ON GOD not HER BARRENNESS

Although she was barren; Hannah chose not to focus on her inability to have children – She Chose to focus on God (the Solution) not her Barrenness (the problem)

In your walk with God you will need to stay focused on God and not what’s happening around you. This doesn’t mean you are denying your current circumstance but rather you are choosing to focus on a SOLUTION and NOT the problem. Many people spend too much time focusing on their problems rather than focusing on the Problem Solver who has the power to change things in their favour. Friend, what you choose to focus on will determine whether you continue to wait on God or give up.

People will diagnose and will give you a prognosis of your life, but remember its God’s word about you that’s matters and has a say in your life. As impossible as things may seem to be, God is capable to do even the impossible. “What’s impossible with man – is possible with God”. Don’t focus on how barren you are but rather focus on how great and powerful God is. God knew you before you were formed in your mother’s womb (Jeremiah 1:5) – so he can change any situation that is working against you. The question is; are you willing to wait on HIM and stay focused on Him.

3. PRAY- Hannah prayed until something happened

It is when we are waiting on God that we should pray the most. Its so easy to get discouraged while waiting – so you need to be in constant prayer so that you do not give in to the negativity or discouraging remarks from outsiders. The enemy will use all sorts of tactics to get you distracted (Peninnahs).

Prayer is what will keep you grounded and focused. Notice how, Hannah never exerted any energy fighting her Rival Peninnah. Instead she chose her battles well. Arguing and fighting with Peninnah wasn’t going to get her pregnant. She knew who to vent out her heart to. She ran to God. And so should you and I.

I encourage you to spend more time PRAYING and Less Time fighting your Peninnahs’ (Peninnah is just a distraction) . LET GOD DO THE FIGHTING FOR YOU. LET GOD DEFEND YOUR HONOR. Stay rooted in Prayer as you WAIT on Him.

THE REWARD OF WAITING FAITHFULLY

1 Samuel 2: 20-21

Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, saying, “May the Lord give you children by this woman to take the place of the one she prayed for and gave to[c] the Lord.” Then they would go home. 21 And the Lord was gracious to Hannah; she gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord.

See this; your waiting period has a reward to it if you remain steadfast and faithful to God. Hannah was further blessed with 3 more sons and 2 daughters after Samuel. Waiting may be difficult, but you sure know that God won’t keep you waiting beyond what you can bare. It is usually during your periods of waiting that Character is refined, and maturity is developed. Did you know that sometimes the longer the wait – the greater the REWARD. Hannah asked for a child and God blessed her with children – more than she had asked for. When we wait on God, know that when He answers and blesses you, He will bless you beyond comprehension. Waiting on God will bring you to a place of “More than Enough”. God rewards faithfulness. If you faithfully remain in Him, and trust completely in His Sovereignty He will be faithful to reward you with more than what you asked for.

Whatever you are waiting on God for – I want to encourage you to keep on waiting on Him in faith, total reliance and surrender to Him – YOUR GREATER IS COMING. Right now it may seem like all odds are against you – And everyone around you seems to be do much better than you – Just keep waiting on God.

May God build your Character and Spiritual stamina as you wait on Him. Do not despise your Waiting Period – Your Turn is coming soon. May God grant you the grace to remain standing and faithful as you wait on Him.