Trusting God in the Waiting
“O Lord, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not hear?” – Habakkuk 1:2a (ESV)
Have you ever prayed for something and wondered why God takes so long to answer? Even when we ask for good things, God sometimes appears to be silent and indifferent to our needs. I know that if praying people have anything in common, it’s that the answers to our prayers don’t always come right away. We pray for wisdom, for miracles, for guidance and direction, for lost loved ones, spiritual revival, and help in times of trouble, and yet we wait, sometimes years, for God to move on our behalf. Could we be doing something wrong? Although it is possible that willful, unrepentant sin can hinder our prayers (Proverbs 28:9, Psalm 66:18, Isaiah 59:2), I believe the “waiting” we experience speaks more to the method in which God chooses to work through us. God often uses the prayers of faithful believers to accomplish His purposes, and we know that God always keeps His promises; the hard part is waiting on His timing.
“The Lord is trustworthy in all He promises and faithful in all He does.” - Psalm 145:13b (NIV)
“But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill His promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” - 2 Peter 3:8-9 (ESV)
We see that many of God’s servants throughout the Bible had to deal with the same question - “Why does God take so long?” - but in every situation, God’s purposes prevailed. A common characteristic among these servants of God was faithfulness. Despite their circumstances, these heroes of the Bible took God at His word and served Him faithfully while they waited for His promises to be fulfilled. Let’s take a look at a few examples:
Joseph (Genesis 37, 39-47)
In the later chapters of Genesis, we read about a boy named Joseph and the incredible story about how God accomplished His purposes through seemingly impossible circumstances. When Joseph was a young man, God gave him a glimpse into his future through two separate dreams, each of which showed Joseph’s family bowing down to him. These dreams were eventually fulfilled after Joseph was made a powerful leader in Egypt (Gen. 41-44), but the road to get there would be long and difficult. Foolishly, Joseph told his brothers about the dreams, unaware that their resulting anger and jealousy would lead them to fake Joseph’s death and sell him into slavery. While he was a slave, Joseph was falsely accused of rape and thrown into prison, where he spent two more years before being called upon to interpret Pharaoh’s dreams. These dreams warned that a great famine was coming, and Joseph’s interpretation elevated him to Pharaoh’s second-in-command.
From the beginning, God divinely appointed Joseph to play an important role in His plan to save everyone from the famine. Although Joseph knew he would become a great leader, he was unaware of the hardships he would have to endure before reaching the fulfillment of God’s promise. Altogether, Joseph spent thirteen years either enslaved or imprisoned before the dreams God gave him came true! Joseph was probably expecting a life of ease and luxury, but got the opposite instead. Put yourself in Joseph’s shoes for a moment. If God promised great things for your future, but then allowed you to live as a slave and prisoner for thirteen years, would you begin to doubt what God had promised? Would you question God’s judgment, or your faith in Him?
When we read Joseph’s story, we see that Joseph never stopped trusting God, and he was blessed because of his faith. Joseph walked in the favor of God even as a slave and prisoner.
“The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master. His master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to succeed in his hands.” - Genesis 39:2-3 (ESV)
“But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison…And whatever he did, the Lord made it succeed.” - Genesis 39:21, 23b (ESV)
There is a lot to be learned from Joseph’s story. Sometimes the road to answered prayer can be long and takes unexpected turns, but no matter what happens, we can trust that God is still with us and that He hears our prayers.
“Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His steadfast love.” - Psalm 33:18 (ESV)
“The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and His ears toward their cry.” - Psalm 34:15 (ESV)
When we remain faithful to God, we receive His blessing and favor, even during our trials.
“Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord…” – Psalm 40:4a (ESV)
“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.” - Jeremiah 17:7-8 (ESV)
Moses (Exodus 1-14)
Unlike Joseph, Moses was raised in a life of wealth and luxury. Moses was found by Pharaoh’s daughter as a baby, and he grew up in Pharaoh’s household, despite being a Hebrew. When he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew slave, Moses killed the Egyptian and fled to the desert, essentially abandoning his life of wealth and power to defend his own people. God would later use Moses to confront Pharaoh and free the Israelites from slavery in Egypt.
God’s deliverance of Israel out of Egypt is a popular story, and there have been a number of movies that depict the story of Moses. Many of the movies depict Moses as a young man, but in reality, Moses fled to the desert when he was forty years old, and he spent another forty years in the desert before encountering God in the burning bush! (Exodus 7:7, Acts 7:23, 30) Though he did not know it, Moses was being refined in the desert for forty years, growing into the man that God intended to use to deliver His people.
Moses was by no means a perfect person. He lived comfortably in Pharaoh’s household for forty years before going to visit his fellow Hebrews who were suffering in slavery. When he finally did, he chose to defend his people by committing murder. But we see that even though Moses’ actions were wrong, God still used him to accomplish His purposes.
In both stories, we can see how God took the evil and wrongdoing in their situations and ultimately used it for His glory. Joseph said to his brothers:
“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.” - Genesis 50:20 (ESV)
Through Joseph and Moses, we learn that living faithfully for God is not an easy road to travel, and can sometimes result in serious worldly consequences. In the end, however, God’s justice and righteousness will always prevail. Like many of us, the prophet Habakkuk asked God why He was taking so long to answer his prayers (Habakkuk 1:2). This is how God answered him:
“Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told.” – Habakkuk 1:5 (ESV)
“For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end – it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay…the righteous shall live by his faith.”- Habakkuk 2:3, 4b (ESV)
Just like Habakkuk, Moses, and Joseph, we can trust that God is working behind the scenes on our behalf. He sees our situations and He knows what we are going through. Not only that, but the Bible tells us that God has a plan for us (Jeremiah 29:11) and that He works out all things for our good:
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” – Romans 8:28 (NIV)
It’s easy to wonder why God doesn’t always answer our prayers immediately, or fix our problems by Himself. Why did God put Joseph through thirteen years of imprisonment and slavery when He could have simply stopped the famine from ever happening? Couldn’t God have struck down the Egyptians and delivered the Israelites without Moses’ help? The truth is that God chooses to use ordinary people like us to accomplish His purposes. By using us, God increases our faith and reveals His glory to those around us. When Joseph was promoted by Pharaoh, he gave God all the glory (Genesis 41:16, 28), and even Pharaoh recognized that God was the source of Joseph’s success (Genesis 41:38-39). Likewise, God delivered the Israelites through Moses to show His power and glory to the world.
“For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth. But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.” - Exodus 9:15-16 (ESV)
Despite our circumstances and no matter how long we wait, our opinion of God should not change, nor should our faith in Him be shaken. We can trust that God is on the throne, that He is in control, and that He hears our prayers. Our job is simply to wait, to trust in God, and to faithfully pursue Him through our circumstances. Through the grace of God, we can learn to be content in whatever the circumstances, for God promises that He is more than enough for us (Philippians 4:19, Psalm 34:9-10, 73:26).
“But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.” – 1 Timothy 6:6-8 (ESV)
“Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” – Philippians 4:11-13 (ESV)