Scripture: Psalm 38:15 “Lord, I wait for you;
you will answer, Lord my God.”
Devotional: Good things happen for those who wait. And sometimes, bad things happen to those who don’t.
- Sarah was told she was going to have a child, but she got tired of waiting and gave her servant Hagar to Abraham to conceive a child. That didn’t go so well (Genesis 16).
- King Saul impatiently offered a burnt offering before God rather than waiting for Samuel the priest- and it cost him his kingdom (1 Samuel 13).
- The Israelites were tired of waiting for Moses to come down from the mountain and cast for themselves an idol in the shape of a calf. 3000 people died as a result (Exodus 32).
The common denominator in these sad stories is a lack of faith. The faithlessness and impatience of each of the persons involved caused them to sin, and much grief followed.
You can I can learn from these biblical stories – perhaps you even have your own situation where your lack of trust and patience cost you dearly. But it doesn’t have to be your story now.
Scripture, both encourages us to trust God when He seems late and gives us ample examples of the disastrous results that can happen when we don’t. Will you receive that encouragement and allow those examples to strengthen your resolve to trust in God, even when He seems late?
Reflect:
- What have you learned about waiting upon the Lord?