“And I commanded Joshua at that time, saying, Thine eyes have seen all that the Lord your God hath done unto these two kings: so shall the Lord do unto all the kingdoms whither thou passest. Ye shall not fear them: for the Lord your God he shall fight for you.” –Deuteronomy 3: 21 & 22
Oswald Chambers once wrote: “Birds sing in the dark.” They sing announcing the sunrise that has yet to come, a sunrise we have yet to see. They have faith, faith built on experience and commitment to the promise that God has ordered the world and keeps it. They sing in the dark.
Like the birds, we must wait for the Lord, and sing in the dark. Praise him in faith that the sun will rise. Praise him for the victory that most certainly will come. If we trust in the Lord and “praise him in the storm” there will be a sunrise at his appointed time. We are not waiting on victory but waiting in victory. In the victory that God has promised. In the victory that we will not be destroyed by Satan and His devices. That God will never “leave us or forsake us.” It’s not easy to wait on the Lord when the world is falling apart around you, but ultimately it comes down to: “do I believe that God's way is best?” If so, I will wait for his answer, wait on his leadership, wait on the victory that he will bring, and not follow my own selfish desires and plan. If you search the scriptures in them, you will find great men and women who waited before the Lord. A situation would come, and they would take it to God; and wait on his answer. Wait with a mind and heart to accept whatever answer came their way. When Saul was challenged by the Philistines he was told to wait, and he took it upon himself to sacrifice. He tried to force God’s hand because he “feared the people.” He was a poor example of waiting before the Lord. When Hezekiah was informed the armies of Assyria would come and destroy his kingdom, he took it to God and prayed until the answer of victory came. Waiting is an easy thing to do when you’re not in a hurry or in danger, or “in over your head.” When there is a problem or a situation on your doorstep and you begin to call on God, and call on God, and call on God, with no answer. Waiting is a true test of our devotion, patience, and faith. Trust that God is leading, the sunrise is coming, the Lord will provide…..wait.
It can be very easy to confuse motion with accomplishment, movement with action. In the sanctified life, waiting on the Lord can be very productive. Even when it may seem to all around you that you are not doing anything, however we must trust that prayer mixed with faith is an active combination. Praise him in the dark, trust that the sun is coming up.
