As a child, I always found it difficult to sleep the night before Christmas. The sense of anticipation was excruciating! That’s why I loved Christmas mornings. The dawn of the new day brought a sense of relief, joy, and promises fulfilled.

Except on one occasion.

That particular Christmas the waiting had finally gotten to me. Prior to Christmas day, when no one was looking, I had crept to the Christmas tree and secretly examined all of the presents. And there I found one with my name on it. I picked it up. It was heavy, so I knew it was something fun, and not clothing. I noticed the wrapping was thin. I could see through it. I peered through the paper, and that’s when I saw what was written on the box, revealing its contents. I now knew what I was getting for Christmas. As with all forbidden fruit, there was a momentary taste of satisfaction, and then an overwhelming feeling of shame and disgust.

Christmas day that year wasn’t as special as all the previous ones had been. Somehow my Christmas had been spoiled. Why? Because I just couldn’t wait for the blessing. 

Why Wait?

We live in a culture that doesn’t like to wait. Our technologically super-charged world is designed to be quick, instant, and convenient. While there’s nothing wrong with convenience, perhaps in the midst of all the hubbub we should ask ourselves an important question: “Must everything be designed to keep us from waiting? Is there no value at all to delayed gratification?”

Must everything be designed to keep us from waiting? Is there no value at all to delayed gratification?

The Word of God tells us there is. “The end of a thing is better than its beginning; the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.” (Ecclesiastes 7:8). In the New Testament, the Greek word for patience (makrothymia) means “the state of remaining tranquil while awaiting an outcome” (BDAG, s.v. “μακροθυμία,” 612d).

The Jewish patriarch Abraham was a good example of this. He waited 25 years before God gave him a promised son. “And so, after he had patiently endured, [Abraham] obtained the promise” (Hebrews 6:15). There are other biblical examples besides Abraham. Putting them all together, one could conclude that the test of faith almost always requires waiting.

This was especially true for Abraham’s descendants who were waiting nearly 2,000 years for the promised Messiah, “the Consolation of Israel” (Luke 2:25). When Jesus did come on the scene, the Bible tells us there were thousands of Jewish people who believed in Him. However, the majority, sadly, did not. And ever since, observant Jews have continued to wait for the arrival of the Messiah. Indeed, in the 15th century, an unknown Jewish author wrote a brief, 13-point Jewish creed, called Ani Ma’amin (I Believe). Point 12 declares: 

“I believe with perfect faith in the coming of the Messiah, and, though he tarry, I will wait daily for his coming.”

Observant Jews memorized this statement of faith. Moreover, some Jewish victims during the Holocaust chanted it as they marched toward the gas chambers (Encyclopedic Dictionary of Judaica, 32).

Today, most Jewish people do not identify with the Orthodox branch of Judaism. Subsequently, most Jewish people no longer look for the coming of a messiah. They have become disillusioned. First, from their perspective, it’s taken too long for the Messiah to arrive. Second, they’ve often had their hopes dashed. Over the past 20 centuries more than two dozen false messiahs have emerged. As a result of these disappointments, many Jewish people have just given up on the whole idea of waiting for the Messiah.

Don’t Jump the Gun

If we’re not careful, Christians can make the same mistake. Even though we’re not waiting for the First Coming of the Messiah, but rather the Second, we can still become impatient with God. We can begin to lose heart and hope, especially as we see the increasing degeneration and corruption of the world around us. Frustrated, we might question and challenge God, “What’s taking so long? Why doesn’t Jesus return?” And if we’re not careful, we may then fall into the trap of giving up, of no longer waiting for the blessing.

If we’re not careful, we may then fall into the trap of giving up, of no longer waiting for the blessing.

That’s what happened to Abraham. Although he is an example of enduring faith, Abraham was not perfect. In fact, Genesis 16 tells us of a time when Abram (his previous name) jumped ahead of God, and, as a result, Ishmael, Abram’s son “according to the flesh” (Galatians 4:23), was born. Abram’s impatience brought devastating consequences. Ishmael’s descendants, the Ishmaelites, had a long history of being a thorn in the flesh of the children of Israel (Psalm 83:1–6). Additionally, many of today’s Arab-speaking and Muslim people claim they are descendants of Ishmael. If that is true, then Israel is still suffering the consequences of Abram’s decision made almost 4,000 years ago. All because of not waiting for the blessing. 

There are others in Scripture who suffered loss because they could not wait. Esau was willing to give up his birthright for a bowl of stew just because he was unwilling to wait for the blessing (Genesis 25:31–34). The prodigal son insisted on receiving his inheritance right then from his father instead of waiting for the blessing to come later (Luke 15:12).

Patience Pays Off

How about you? How’s your patience with God? He’s promised that Jesus is coming back. Do you believe Him? Or have you given up waiting? The Bible predicted there would be mockers concerning Jesus’ return, “Knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, and saying, ‘Where is the promise of His coming?’” (2 Peter 3:3–4). Scoffers don’t understand that God does not measure time the way we do. He exists outside of time, so “with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (v. 8). Just because we have to wait what seems to be a long time for Jesus’ return does not mean God is going to break His promise or is slow about keeping it: “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (v. 9).

Just because we have to wait what seems to be a long time for Jesus’ return does not mean God is going to break His promise or is slow about keeping it.

So how should we respond to God’s timetable regarding the coming of Christ? Perhaps as Christians we might respectfully adapt the Ani Ma’amin (I Believe) creed to reflect our own beliefs: 

“I believe with perfect faith that the Messiah has already come, and, though He tarry, I will wait daily for His return.”

Isn’t this what the Bible enjoins us to do? “Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand” (James 5:7–8). 

My friend, don’t “spoil your Christmas” by not waiting. Instead, “imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises” (Hebrews 6:12).

The Lord is coming back. Wait for the blessing. It’ll be worth it.

Don’t like waiting? Don’t worry. There’s an app for that! You can actually hire someone in Uber-like fashion to wait in line for you at the store. No joke. It’s a real thing.

True confession: I don’t like waiting and I know that sometimes my own impatience robs me of all the strength that could be mine if I were to flex my faith muscle by waiting on the Lord.

We know that Scripture has much to say about waiting on the Lord, but what does that look like in our everyday lives? It doesn’t look like cloistering yourself off in a cave somewhere, sitting in meditative contemplation day and night, wearing brown sackcloth. No, waiting on the Lord has different looks:

Sitting in the waiting room, strategically wearing two gowns for maximum coverage, I begin mentally rehearsing the Scripture verses on which I chose to focus on this day of testing, uncertainty, and… waiting. This is my second brain scan in six weeks. The first MRI may have revealed something we weren’t even looking for, and so now, we are taking a closer look with a second MRI… and waiting.

We often mistakenly think of waiting as doing nothing. The truth is quite the contrary. The heart that is waiting on the LORD and trusting in His character will actively praise Him, and live life accordingly.

Sitting at the table in the crowded restaurant, I’m still reeling from the emotion of breaking off our engagement. At 34 years of age, I know what it is to wait for marriage on God’s terms. I came to this moment after much prayer and a definite conviction from God’s Word and God’s Spirit, but… the pain is real… and so is the waiting.

Sitting across the desk from the boss, still processing the recent tour of the factory with other hopeful interviewees, I try to make myself believe that any job is better than no job. I had recently moved out to Washington and had been without work for three months. Feeling rather desperate for income, I agreed to work long, hard hours in a smelly, underground mushroom plant. Then, he told me I would have to work every Sunday. I asked if Sunday could be my one day off. He said, “no.” So I said, “Thank you, goodbye.” Church was priority. The wait for employment would have to continue.

“Wait on the Lᴏʀᴅ: Be of good courage and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lᴏʀᴅ” (Psalm 27:14).

Have you ever looked real closely at a strong rope? A strong rope is really a collection of weaker single strands twisted or bound together. The Hebrew word translated wait, twice-mentioned in this verse, is qavah.  Qavah carries with it the idea of being collected or bound together in strength.

Qavah also conveys a confident expectation, a hope. What am I binding my heart to? Am I wrapped up in my physical health? Personal relationships? Financial stability? Am I hoping and setting my expectations on lesser things, in my circumstances? Or am I binding my heart to the LORD’s in this time of waiting? Am I looking expectantly toward heaven? Am I waiting on the LORD, abiding in Him, learning of His character, trusting in His loving-kindness? Our heart’s strength is determined by what or who we wait on.

“But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever. I will praise Thee forever because Thou hast done it, and I will wait on Thy name for it is good before Thy saints” (Psalm 52:8–9).

We often mistakenly think of waiting as doing nothing. The truth is quite the contrary. The heart that is waiting on the LORD and trusting in His character will actively praise Him, and live life accordingly. This heart seeks to know Him and to make Him known. In that place of holy worship, God will strengthen this heart and cause this heart to flourish and bear fruit. When we abide in Him, that is when we produce fruit (John 15:5). The fruit of the olive tree provided oil for ancient oil lamps. And so, we also should let our lights shine before men, that they may see our good works, and glorify our Father which is in heaven (Matthew 5:16).

“I waited patiently (qavah, qavah) for the Lᴏʀᴅ; and He inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord” (Psalm 40:1–3).

“The Lᴏʀᴅ is good unto them that wait (qavah) for Him, to the soul that seeketh Him” (Lamentations 3:25).

No matter what the circumstances you find yourself sitting in, may your heart continually wait on the LORD! There’s no app for that… just faith.