Wait on God
“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” Isa.40:31.
What does it mean to wait on the Lord? After the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus talks to His disciples, “And He said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.” Mark 6:31. Waiting on the Lord includes getting alone and resting. Jesus considered this to be very valuable and necessary for His disciples because of the tremendous load that was upon them caring for all the people that were coming and going. When our service for God becomes so great that we have little to no time to come apart and spend time with God alone, then a rest is called for. It is not enough to just get away from it all. The cares of this life have a way to constantly bombard us with things that need done. In Psalm 46:10 we find, “Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.” It is important to be still, that is to shut out all of this world’s influences as well as all of the things our flesh wishes to press into our minds. A time to ask God to help us rid our minds and actions of all interference so that we might concentrate on His glorious presence and delve deeply into His Word to get fully refreshed. The disciples in Mark 6:31 had no time to eat and were worn out from the heavy load. Jesus had them come apart to an empty place so that they would have time to eat, rest up, and commune with the Lord Himself.
In 1 Kings 19:1-13 we read where Elijah had just slaughtered all the priests of Baal. Then Jezebel sent a message to Elijah that she was going to have him killed. Elijah then ran away far into the desert area of Judahto escape Jezebel. An angel comes to him and feeds him twice and sends him on to mount Horeb. In verses 9-13 we pick up the story, “And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah? And he said, I have been very jealous for the Lord God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken Thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left ; and they seek my life, to take it away. And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake: and after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah? God had Elijah travel even farther away to a quiet place, where He redirects him to do some small errands to help Elijah restore his confidence in God and recover his spiritual strength. Sometimes we need to get far away from all that is upon us so that we can regain our sense of direction and return to service for God. The enemy will do everything they can to discourage and wear down the servant of God. A good feeding from the Word of God and some quiet time alone with God is the only answer under such a heavy onslaught. Also, remember what James told us in James 4:7, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Yep, it is a fact if we do as the Word of God says here that the devil will indeed flee away. The results, of such a battle handled this way, is a great sense of peace. The peace of God is very refreshing. God will use this experience to lift us up and strengthen us.
The importance of getting away and spending some quiet time apart from all that comes upon us in the war against the enemy is further emphasized in the actions of the Savior while on this earth. In Luke 6:12we find, “And it came to pass in those days, that He went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.” If Jesus found this necessary, we certainly will also find it necessary. In fact Paul gives us another example of this need in Gal. 1:17-18, “Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus. Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and abode with him fifteen days.” Paul used a deserted place for three years to learn directly from the Savior what it was God wanted him to do and what new doctrine needed to be taught. When we find ourselves needing to know what God would have us do and things are not clear, a time spent alone with God will greatly aid.
Many benefits are can be received from a time spent alone with God. Just as it says in Isa. 40:31, we know that our strength can be renewed. Lam. 3:25tells us, “The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh Him.” Yes, God is good unto those that wait on Him. We find the benefits of spending time alone with God includes strengthening (Psa. 27:14), release from worry (Psa. 37:7), being exalted by God (Psa. 37:34), and hope (Psa. 130:5). Waiting on God will also keep us from making a huge mistake in our direction of service. No greater misstep can be had than to be geographically out of the will of God. It is worth the time and effort to spend time away from all other influences with God in prayer and in some cases we need to also fast. Fasting can greatly assist us in getting the world and the flesh out of the way so that we can concentrate on what God is trying to tell us.
Isa. 40:31 also tells us that waiting on God will allow us to run and not be weary. Paul further states in 1 Cor. 9:24, Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.” Also in Heb. 12:1 we find, Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.” To run well, we need to spend a great deal of time alone with God to receive nourishment, strength, direction, and over all empowerment to accomplish the task He has set before us. To finish well is a goal very worthy of our very best service which we can only achieve when God is in full control. Waiting on the Lord will allow us to run and not become weary and to walk and not faint along the way. Waiting on the Lord will enable us to finish our race as victors. God even commands us to be still and wait on Him. “Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psa. 46:10.