Acts 12:37

It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them.

Acts 12:37

We read in many places in the Bible about people waiting.

Abraham spent decades waiting for the Lord’s promise to him to be fulfilled, that his descendants would be more numerous than the stars.

Simeon, an old man, had waited all of his life for the coming of the Messiah since God had promised him he would see him. (Acts 2:25).

Yet, Acts 12:37 reminds us that waiting isn’t about passively doing nothing. Waiting is an active verb. Sometimes, like Abraham, we become unclear as to what it is that God would have us to do during that time.

At other times, like Simeon, we hold fast to what we know, remaining righteous and devout, trusting that the presence of the Holy Spirit will be enough to make the way plain to us.

Even Jesus experienced times of waiting. At the wedding in Cana, he told his mother that the time for his ministry had not yet begun. He was waiting on his Father to tell him when to start.

In the Garden of Gethsemane, he also waited, gaining the strength and courage to face what lay ahead.

There are times when we too are called to wait. It’s never an easy place to be, because it can feel as though we’re doing nothing. Yet our obedience pleases our Father. We are watching, waiting for when His will is revealed, and he blesses us for it.

I’m in a waiting period in my life with a few different things. There’s nothing more that I can do, but wait on others to do their parts, and for God to bless the results of our labor.

It’s not my favorite place to be. When we wait, control is not ours, and the outcome can seem uncertain.

Yet waiting is a good thing. It develops anticipation for what lies ahead. It creates an appreciation for all that it took to get there. It reminds us that the fruits of our labor aren’t ours to command, but gifts that have been given to us by God.

As you follow God’s leading in your writing, consider the times you’ve had to wait. Perhaps you had to wait for the right words to come, or for contest results that seemed to take forever to be announced, or for your words to appear in that magazine or book you’ve been hoping to see published.

Whatever it is that you’re being asked to wait on, know that when the time comes, the floodgates will open, and God will pour out his blessing on you.