When You’re Tired of Waiting

Okay, waiting is just no fun. Let’s be honest, we all hate to wait. Yet, our lives are spent waiting on everything and anything it seems.

Life is full of waiting. We wait to get paid; we wait in line at the grocery store; we wait for mailman; we wait for a change to come; we wait to grow up; we wait for kids to leave home; we wait to get married, wait, wait, wait, and more wait.

Since we are being candid, I will be honest, I hate to wait. I just do. Not sure when I began to really hate waiting, but I have no patience for it. But I bet you do too. It just doesn’t seem natural to wait. Yet a lot happens in the waiting.

One of the things I hate waiting for the most, and you probably feel this way, is waiting for God.

Yes, God. The awesome, omnipotent, God our Father makes us wait. As a matter of fact, He loves to make us wait. Why? Because there are lessons in the waiting. Lessons, we can only learn in the waiting place of His presence. We can get them no other place.

3 lessons we can learn while we wait… Click To Tweet

While I was Waiting… 3 Lessons I Learned

There are many reasons for the waiting but let me share three that I have gone through and what I learned from them. You may be in the same place as well and hopefully can see that there is a good end to the waiting, indeed.

One, I had to wait for change to come in my life from depression and divorce.  This was so hard I cannot even really put it into words.

Depression is a beast of a condition that just robs your life of so many things. You can see your life going but you are not going with it. Does that make sense?  I prayed, I fasted, I did things to help relieve depression but it didn’t go overnight. It took a long while. I had to wait. During those depression days, I was not even sure what I was waiting for except to feel better about life and myself. No matter what I tried, nothing worked permanently. I had to wait… To wait and trust God in the moments I was in. I had to wait daily before Him for His touch and His words of comfort.

Lesson 1

What did I learn? I learned that God is a faithful Father. He is the most loving and kind person and true to His Word. I learned that He can be depended on and that He will never leave us alone. Never.

Second, I had to wait for some resolution to my marriage and for my soul to heal. No, it didn’t end the way I wanted it to. It actually died the death of divorce. I had to wait to see if this was a failure or what. To wait for my heart to heal. I had to wait for my life to heal. This was not easy. I felt like a failure and had no confidence in the future of anything. Truth be told, I am still waiting for the rest of my heart to heal. Recovery from divorce is not easy. The pain of rejection goes deep.

Lesson 2

What did I learn here? I learned that God makes no mistakes. Life is a great teacher. Troubles and pain are a great teacher if you embrace them and learn from them. I learned that I was and am a great person. That I was stronger than I realized. I learned that I had gifts and talents and that God doesn’t waste a pain. God doesn’t waste a tear we cry. I learned God is the God of forgiveness, love and grace. I learned God as my Father in a way that I never would have had the problems not come.

At the end of this trial, I actually could say, “thank you for all the wrong you did to me. It made me into a better woman today.”

I learned a lot!

Lastly, I had to wait for joy and laughter. I realized one day that I hadn’t laughed my best laugh yet or lived my best life. It was time to start living no matter what was done to me. I was busy waiting for laughter and joy to return when they had actually never left.

When we hurt to the core of our soul, we think that joy and laughter left. They didn’t, they just get covered up with the pain and hurt. They are there. Trust me. So one day, I decided, no more. Joy and laughter will return. They will show their faces again in my life and they start with me.

Lesson 3

What did I learn here? I learned that the joy and laughter was not something I was searching for but something I already owned. It was mine. It was taken by the man who left or the pain he caused No, it was still within me. Tucked safely away in my heart. Buried under mountains of shame, rejection, and failure.

I dug around the crevices of my heart and released joy from its sleeping place and began to laugh. I chose and I’m here to tell you that you can choose too. Laugh again my dear friend.

When we hurt to the core of our soul, we need to remember that we have the power to choose laughter. Click To Tweet

Bottom Line?

So, turn your waiting into a lesson that you can gain from. Do it today.

Has God ever used waiting to teach your heart? Or are you currently in a season of waiting? We’d love to hear from you! Share your thoughts, comments, and prayer requests in the comments below.

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P.S. You can also sign up to receive a free 7-day devotional series on Grace-FULL Waiting by our fellow Candid Gal, Jaime Hampton here: