Passion: The Essential Collection DevotionalSample

“Waiting Here for You” Devotion Passion feat. Christy Nockels “Waiting here for you With our hands lifted high in praise” No one likes to wait. One quick look around at the reactions to lines at the DMV or the grocery store reveals just how impatient we can become. How many times have you sighed in frustration because a customer is counting out change to a cashier? Do they not know how much is left on your to-do list? Ever had a slow Internet day raise your ire? What about more difficult scenarios when we’re waiting to hear back on job applications, from a potential love interest, or on a diagnosis? When we were young, some of us were taught that when we pray to God, He usually gives one of three answers: “Yes,” “No” or “Wait”. Waiting is the answer we least want to receive because, in our hyper-rushed, instant gratification world, it doesn’t feel like a real answer. Instead, it feels like we are being ignored. It is little wonder why we often end up trying to create our own solutions to our problems when it seems like God is not answering our prayers. Are we missing something in our impatience? Are we missing out on a process bigger than the immediacy of the moment that we’re in? In Psalm 27, David shows us that there is a more effective way to pray in all situations. Prayer is not a monologue, but rather a dialogue that requires us to wait and listen for a reply. Even then we are called to do more with our prayer time than sit and listen: “Wait for the Lord; Be strong and take heart And wait for the Lord.” (Psalm 27:14) The kind of waiting described in this verse is active. Our requests aren’t just randomly lifted up to be stamped “approved” or “denied”, but are, instead, a part of the questions we ask in the process of living by the Spirit. The key phrases like “be strong” and “take heart” remind us that waiting still involves action on our part and that this waiting is not without purpose. In the times when we are waiting for an answer, we can still find beauty and purpose within the process. As the song says, we are able to praise Him in the midst of the uncertainty, finding strength and courage even as we face our fear of the unknown. By Matt Conner