Written By: Richelle Henry
I used to pray and be mad at God. I was so mad at the fact that He wouldn’t listen to me concerning my future spouse anymore. I was so mad that, try as I might, He still wouldn’t give me what I wanted. I mean, I’ve been faithful. I cut off all those “randoms,” and I even stopped praying about it and I’m still here. Single.
How often have you felt the above? How often have you sat down and realized that the Lord was taking way too long? I mean, why would He promise you something and then make you wait? You did EVERYTHING He told you to do and still you find yourself upset, impatient, and feeling totally forgotten. Well, I hear you! I confess, I’ve shaken my fists at God on numerous occasions because I, like you, became tired of waiting.
I’m not ashamed to say that I’ve offered the Lord a few conditional prayers. You know, the “If you do this, then I will do this” kind of prayers. I’ve treated the Lord as though we’re simply business partners instead of realizing that we are in a loving relationship as Father and Child.
However, waiting on God, means waiting on the One who makes good on every single promise that He’s ever made. I know that you read that and probably sucked your teeth, because the statement sounds like a clichéd and repeated one. However, He fulfills His word. When I think of all the promises that He’s made concerning my life, the ones that He’s fulfilled and the ones that I’m currently awaiting fulfillment for, I realize that He is worthy of trust, because His character is trustworthy.
Often times, we take unfulfilled promises and use them to make tick marks on our “faithfulness of God” survey. You know, the imaginary scoreboard that we keep for God, as a method of measuring His faithfulness and ability. We take visibility and manifestations of promises spoken as notches of glory that we ascribe only when evidence is found. We have become wearied waiters because we’ve been too busy contending with a truth that will never change and that truth is God and His faithfulness.
Honestly, we aren’t truly fighting God, because He has no worthy opponent—particularly not His creation. Again, I have wrestled with the idea that God is not faithful and concluded on different occasions that waiting is designed torment. But remember that even the best lie from the enemy cannot overstep the faithfulness and truthfulness of the Lord.
God is so sure when He speaks that He even swears by Himself when it comes to fulfillment (Genesis 22:16). Faithfulness isn’t just what He does, but it is every fiber of who He is (Hebrews 10:23). May we hold fast in the weariness. May we rehearse His character despite our discomfort. May we remember the One who comes through. Every. Single. Time.
