How Do I Keep Waiting on God When I'm Sick of Waiting?

Do you struggle to wait on God?

For Christians, this is a tricky topic because in a culture that tells us to just "make it happen" and achieve everything through human effort, Scripture tells us repeatedly to wait on God. To learn to walk at his pace. But as we wait, we sometimes worry if we're doing enough. We want to wait, but we also don't want to be lazy.

I define a waiting season as a time in our lives when we are actively trusting, obeying, and doing what we sense God has asked us to do, all while not seeing the fulfillment of what we believe he has promised or would want for our lives.

The waiting James is talking about is the waiting for Christ's return. With these words in verses 7-8, James begins to close out his epistle. He switches from addressing the wealthy to speaking directly to the poor. He changes from correcting to challenging.

He inserts an illustration that would be familiar to the minds of his listeners: farming. The striking part of this imagery is the helplessness of the farmer without rain. He prepares the ground, plants the seed, and waits with anticipation, expecting rain to come.

Rain has come before, and rain will come again.

To someone who had never seen rain before, this would seem absurd. To place your livelihood and the well-being of your family in the hope that water will pour down from the sky is incredible, almost foolish. But to the farmer and the person who has observed the seasons, they know this hope is not foolish at all.

It’s the same with a person who has placed their hope in God. This hope is not anchored in blind faith, but in the reality of God’s faithfulness in their own life. His words in Scripture have rung true in their own lives. His promises have transformed their homes, their marriage, and their careers.

Waiting for Rain

Maybe you are in a season of waiting for rain. You feel anxious because, despite how much you pray, you sense little direction from God about what your next steps should be. It’s frustrating, and you might even be feeling thoughts of anger towards God.

You sit in church services but feel numb. You spend time with God in prayer, but nothing seems to change. You ask God to give you peace as you lie down to sleep at night, but find yourself fighting off feelings of anxiety. What do you do?

Satan’s goal for every believer is to convince them of this lie, that rain will not come. God’s promises are for others, but not for you. He loves you, but he does not like you. He hopes you will make good choices, but he will never show up to help direct your decisions. You’re washed up. You’re finished. Rain will never come.

Be Patient

Three times in these two verses, James calls his readers to be patient. Just as the farmer is patient for rain, so we are patient for God.

Our foundation for patience comes from God’s patience towards us. 2 Peter 3:9 says, “ The Lord does not delay his promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance."

God is patient in bringing judgment to this earth because he longs to see his children repent and turn to him. He showed patience with Adam and Eve by allowing them to live, with Noah and his family, with the children of Israel, and with his church.

If you are struggling with patience this morning, call on God and ask him for his strength. Ask him to give you the same patience he is currently extending to you in your own life.

Establish Your Heart

In verse 8, James says to, “Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.” He is saying to strengthen and make firm our resolve in God. How do we do this? Several ways.

First, we find strength in our direct connection and intimacy with God. Personally, as I reflect on the words James writes, my faith in God is made stronger.

But this strength is reinforced in connection with others. It is established by being doers of the words and actively living out the teachings of Jesus to those around us. It is sharing our struggles with a close Christian friend. It is sharing our faith with those who know very little of God. As we do this, our faith in God is better established.

Another key way our faith is strengthened is by incorporating daily disciplines into our lives, replacing destructive habits. It’s cutting down TV time to read a good book. It’s eliminating social media sites from our phones so we can be more attentive to those around.

It’s finding good audio material to listen to on our commute to work rather than wasting that time with talk radio or mindless worry. It’s getting on a good exercise program so our minds can be alert. It’s replacing junk food with food that will help us grow stronger.

It’s about finding those little tradeoffs in our lives and replacing the things that cause us anxiety and stress with things that give us strength.

If you are in a season of waiting on God’s rain in your life today, how are you strengthening your heart? What are you doing to ensure your heart will not give in to the lies of Satan?

Take a few moments to evaluate your life and resolve to do whatever it takes to strengthen your faith in God this morning.