What do you do when you receive a bad report from the doctor? What do you do when the wayward child you have prayed diligently for has a hardened heart toward God, or when the bills are piling up and the only hope you have is another interview with little chance of getting the job?
You believe that with God everything is possible, so you pray and ask Him to change your situation. And yet, things are not getting better, but are getting worse. What is God up to? Is there something you are doing wrong that is keeping Him from pouring His blessings on you? Certainly if you knew what you could do to change the situation, you would do it immediately.
When we pray and do not hear from God, I believe He speaks through His Word. Maybe you are thinking, Well, my specific situation is not described in Scripture. True, but we can learn about God’s heart and His ways through the Bible.
For example, in Genesis 15, God makes a covenant with Abram. Abram is childless and the prospect of becoming a father seems impossible unless God intervenes with a miracle. God promises Abram that he will have a son. And, that’s not all—God promises his offspring will be as numerous as the stars in the sky. But time passes without a miracle. No pregnancy. Abram’s wife, Sarai, starts questioning God’s promise and decides to take the matter into her own hands.
Granted, waiting is very difficult. But we can learn an important lesson from Sarai: it is better to wait on God and trust Him than to interrupt God’s plans and experience the consequences of making things worse.
Are you waiting on God? Have you been asking Him to change your circumstances? I encourage you not to lose hope. Even though it may not appear that God is paying attention, believe and know that He is working all things out for your good and for His glory. He is working in your waiting. The waiting often brings us a peace that He alone can give. He alone can bring calm in the midst of a storm.
God has a plan, and when you put your hope in Him, you will find the grace to wait. Resist the temptation to intervene on your own. Ask God to give you the strength to wait even when you do not see an answer to your prayers.
After this, the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.” But Abram said, “Sovereign LORD, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.” Then the word of the LORD came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness. Genesis 15:1-6 (NIV)
