When You’re Tired of Waiting on God

Last updated on: August 11, 2017 at 7:10 am by Josh Daffern

When You’re Tired of Waiting on God 2017-08-11T07:10:03-06:00 Josh Daffern

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

When you’re tired of waiting on God, keep waiting.

What do you do when you’re tired of waiting on God? I know you’ve been there before. Perhaps it’s the promotion you’re sure you’ve earned but doesn’t seem to come through. Maybe it’s waiting for a child or grandchild to come back to God. You can’t remember how many times you’ve quoted the Proverb “Raise a child in the way he should go . . .” Maybe it’s waiting for God to bring you a spouse. You’ve done all the right things (mostly). You’ve kept your standards high. You’ve waited. You want to be married more than life itself. And yet, nothing. No one comes along.

What do you do when you know God could answer your prayers in an instant and give you what you think you deserve, and yet he doesn’t? What do you do when you’re tired of waiting on God?

Robin and I experienced the frustrating journey of waiting on God to have children. Even before we were married, we both knew that we wanted kids, lots of them. So after a few years of marriage, we started trying. Nothing. Years went by, nothing. Spent way too much money on fertility specialists, nothing. Got pregnant once, miscarriage. It was brutal. We were convinced that God himself had given us the desire to have kids, and yet he kept the fulfillment of that very promise from us. Everyone around us was having babies. Even teenagers that Robin and I worked with at school and church were having kids. It’s as if the world was mocking us.

Our hope was severely tested, but it never broke. We did all we could do. We kept waiting. A psalm that became my clarion call during this journey was Psalm 27:14, “Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” This verse became our beacon, our anchor, the handle we would hold onto when all hope seemed to be slipping away.

We never wavered in our hope that we would one day have children of our own. While we waited, we wanted to be open to adoption as well, something near and dear to both of us. We went through the adoption process, and in 2007 we met a beautiful three month old boy we named Zeke. In 2009, we got to take a gorgeous little boy named Shepherd home from the hospital to live with us. Our lives were full. Reflecting on all that happened to us over the years, Robin and I realized God’s plan. We knew exactly why we didn’t have children of our own the first decade of our marriage: if we had kids of our own, we would have never had the wonderful privilege of parenting Zeke and Shepherd. We love those boys more than life itself. We couldn’t have made better boys if we tried. Those two were the reasons we waited. And we were at peace. We thought we knew God’s plan.

And then, just because God is God and can do whatever he wants, Robin and I recently found out we were pregnant, and a few short months ago gave birth to Linclon Isaac, our first natural born son. And now life is even fuller. God is good. His plan is worth waiting for.

I’m so glad we didn’t give up hope. And as much as we hated waiting, I admit that God knew what he was doing. His way was best. Perhaps it’s the same in your life. If you need an encouragement, it’s this: When you’re tired of waiting on God, keep waiting.

QUESTION: Have you ever had to wait on God for something that you felt he’d promised you?

Previous Post

September 11, 2012

The Tipping Point, by Malcolm Gladwell

Next Post

September 13, 2012 Practical Ways to Fight Lust

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Family Matters Ministry in the Trenches Morning Brew MTVpastor New Wineskins Top Menu Truth from Life Uncategorized Watch Sermons

Select a Month June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What was the primary inheritance method in biblical times?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Youngest child Firstborn son Equal division Oldest daughter