Head Dump: Prayer 12

Waiting on the Lord.

Many years ago, one of the pastors of my church spoke about a spiritual exercise he practiced called waiting on the Lord. I do not know the origin of the practice, whether he had developed it himself or whether it was something he had picked up elsewhere. I think that there are many of these exercises that various parts of the church practice (the world-wide church). They are specific to one or another group. However, because there are divisions in the visible church they are not widely known. I had never heard of lectio divina until recently, for example.

He used several illustrations and pegged the practice to several passages in the Old Testament.

One of the illustrations was out of Psalm 42.

Psalm 42:1,2,11. NASB95
1 As the deer pants (lit., “longs for”) for the water brooks,
So my soul pants for You, O God.
2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God;
When shall I come and appear before God?
11 Why are you in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become disturbed within me?
Hope in (or “wait for” or “wait on”) God, for I shall yet praise Him,
The help of my countenance and my God.

The deer’s attention is on the water. “My soul’s” attention is on God.

Another illustration was that of a deer hunter. The hunter is alone in the woods. He is in his blind or his tree stand or leaning up against a tree somewhere in the woods. He is still and he is quiet. He needs to be alert for things that he is not normally alert for. To do so, he must ignore all the noise of his regular thoughts.

Because of the underbrush and because deer do not like to leave the cover of the underbrush, the hunter is attentive to small things. He will not see the whole deer. He will listen for the crack of a twig or the rustle of leaves on the ground. He looks for parts of a deer: the straight line of the back, an eye or an ear where none should be, the flash of white on the tail or the belly. He is looking for things that are not part of the woods, but part of the deer. That may be all that he sees of the deer before he can fire his gun.

He is waiting on the deer.

Imagine a person at an airport. He is are there to pick up an old friend. He has done many things with this person over the years, but has not seen him/her for a long time. What might he be thinking? How might he feel? He watches expectantly for his friend. He looks for a person who carries himself the way he did, is his height or build or hair color. His ears listen for the sound of his voice.

He is waiting on his friend.

Likewise, when I wait for the Lord. I still my soul. [Psalm 46:10a. "Cease striving (or, 'be still') and know that I am God." NASB95.] But this waiting is not passive. I am expectant. In my heart, my eyes rove to and fro. I watch for a glimpse. I listen for the voice of a beloved friend.

I am waiting on the Lord.

Frankly, it is very easy to become distracted while doing this. I will have all sorts of thoughts rise to the surface if I try to clear my mind. Here is what I do about them. I keep a note pad nearby for things I need to remember to do. And I return to waiting. I give the worries to the Lord. And I return to waiting. I confess the sins. And return to waiting.

I also meditate on a single verse. Something small, easily remembered, easily held in the mind. Therefore, my mind is somewhat engaged.

The purpose of waiting, though, is not be still or to meditate on a verse. It is to catch glimpses of the Lord. I do not want, therefore, to get caught up in trying to be still or in thinking about the verse.

The purpose of waiting on the Lord is being with the Lord. Just as the deer’s focus is on the water, and the hunter’s focus is on the deer, and the person in the airport is on finding his friend, so my purpose is find Him.

And in my experience, that rarely happens while waiting. I will catch a glimpse of Him later in the day or in the week: an insight, a word of wisdom or encouragement for another, the realization that He is with me in a more tangible way than normal, a conviction about a course of action. Sometimes it is the sense of being more alive, more attuned to the wonders around me. A glass of water may taste wonderful. A tiny flower catches my attention because of its miniature beauty. And I give glory to God.

Some other verses related to waiting.

Isaiah 40:29-31. NASB95.
29 He gives strength to the weary, and to him who lacks might He increases power. 30 Though youths grow weary and tired, and vigorous young men stumble badly, 31 yet those who wait for (or “on”) the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary.

Habakkuk 2:1-3. NASB 95.
I will stand on my guard post and station myself on the rampart; and I will keep watch to see what He will speak to me, and how I may reply when I am reproved. Then the Lord answered me and said, “Record the vision and inscribe it on tablets, that the one who reads it may run. “For the vision is yet for the appointed time; it hastens toward the goal and it will not fail. Though it tarries, wait for it; for it will certainly come, it will not delay.

Romans 8:19. NASB95. For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.

Looking at the verses, "waiting on the Lord" could just as easily be called "longing for the Lord."

I have placed other verses related to waiting in the comments.