Why Should We Wait On God?

Why is Waiting Important?

Have you ever prayed for something and felt like God wasn’t listening? Have you ever wondered why God makes us wait for His answers? If you have, you’re not the only one.

A few years back, I wanted to get a job. I had reached the age where I could legally work, and I wanted to get at it as soon as I could. But as my parents and I prayed about it, as much as I wanted a job, we sensed God telling us to wait.

Many people struggle with the idea of waiting on God, especially in our fast-paced and impatient culture. But what if waiting is actually beneficial? What if waiting is part of God’s plan to grow our faith?

Our Culture Hates Waiting

If there’s one thing our modern society strongly dislikes, it’s waiting. Everyone wants the immediate. They want the fastest fast food, the quickest Wi-Fi, the speediest cars, and so on. They want what they want when they want it.

This isn’t necessarily wrong—until they try to apply the same mindset to God and their prayer life.

Because, as anyone who has read the Bible knows, God is not rash. One of His strongest virtues is giving people incredulous amounts of time to make decisions—like turning back to Him—rather than giving them “what they deserve” immediately.

God Asks Us to Wait

“Why?” you may ask. “Why do I have to wait for answers to my prayers?” I often ask the same question. Like why can’t God heal this person right now or answer that request today? Why couldn’t God allow me to get a job when I wanted one?

Around the time I was struggling with these thoughts, I heard a powerful message at a youth event at church. The main point was this: What’s better for you? Getting everything you want right away, or waiting? Doing whatever you want right now, or waiting until the time is right?

There were several examples given, but they all came back to the same point.

Waiting Strengthens Us

You can’t just say to yourself, “I want to run a marathon.” You have to wait, train, and prepare. The same is true with God and prayer.

The more we wait, the more time we’re given to trust God…or not. If God were a genie, everyone would believe in Him. But He isn’t, which is why He asks us for patience. In a subtle way, He’s testing how much we trust in Him.

As the great writer C.S. Lewis once said, “I am sure that God keeps no one waiting unless He sees that it is good for him to wait.”

Would receiving an instant answer to every request help you grow in your walk with Jesus? Most likely not, as much as you may want that. Relationships are built on trust and respect, and if God merely decided to give you everything you asked for immediately, there’d be no room to grow your trust.

Yes, I get it, we all want what we want now—me included. That’s the problem with this world, in so many ways. Except getting it now doesn’t help us grow. It often does the opposite.

I think that a big part of why people don’t want to listen to God is because they feel like He never listens to them.

However, Matthew 7:7 (ESV) says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”

God is listening, always. The problem is we’re too busy to hear what He’s saying to us. We get so wrapped up in our fast-paced culture that we ignore God’s still, gentle whisper.

We Need to Wait for the Best

If we, as Christians, want to see true growth, we have to trust God and wait. We have to know that the only way our faith can grow is by patience and perseverance.

Look at the story of Hannah in 1 Samuel 1-2.

Hannah, who hadn’t been able to have children for years, prayed for the birth of Samuel for well over a decade before her prayer was answered. Most people will look at that sentence and highlight the part where it says she prayed for “over a decade”. They’ll use it as proof that God takes forever to answer prayers.

What they miss is the second part: “Her prayer was answered.” Hannah was dedicated, and even when it seemed impossible, she continued praying. And her prayer was answered.

Just as a side note, my parents have a similar story to Hannah’s. They tried for years to have children and were unable to. They prayed and waited, and eventually, I was the answer to that prayer. That’s why my name is Samuel, which means “God heard”. If you ask them about the journey, they will say that they wouldn’t change it for anything because of all that God taught them during the waiting.

So, I ask, is there something that you’ve been hoping for, deep down, but you’ve given up praying for it? God knows all—but He still wants to hear you ask for what you need. So, ask Him. God will always hear your prayers, but it’s up to Him to decide when and how to answer them. While I had to ask God several times about getting a job, I did receive answers, nonetheless.

We need to remember that we cannot see the big picture. We cannot see the true reason for why He wants us to wait. Almost always there is a very good reason why we haven’t gotten what we’ve asked for yet.

Remember to be Patient

As long as you prayerfully ask, God will listen. He knows what you need and when you need it, regardless of what you think. So next time your prayer seems to be going unanswered, keep one thing in mind: God is strengthening your faith.

As Romans 12:12 (ESV) says, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” If I hadn’t been patient in asking about a job, I wouldn’t have seen the amazing plan God was shaping for me: becoming a Lifeguard.

Rather than jump into the workforce I’ve spent the past year completing the courses required to become a Lifeguard. So instead of just getting any job, I now have a skill set that I can use in the workforce and also at our church camp come summer.

Yeah, it’s not fun to wait. But I also know that sometimes waiting can be a blessing in disguise. God’s plans are always for the best. So wait, but while you’re at it, keep praying.