When Life on hold....

Sometimes waiting builds our character; other times it's God's way of granting us a much-needed rest.
God knows when we're exhausted, and he wants us to have time to catch our breath.
Psalm 23:2, 3 reminds us,

"He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul.

If you're going through a waiting period, here are three ways to profit from it:

1. Wait quietly

God encourages his waiting ones to be still and spend time being quiet.
Psalm 16:5:

"Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure."

Knowing God had secured my future, I could wait quietly for him to reveal his plan.

Writing helpful Scriptures on index cards and carry them with you, When thoughts become disquieted, read the verses and ask God to help you see his perspective on waiting.
In the Christian classic Abundant Living, author E. Stanley Jones says it's in spending quiet time with God that a Christian gains poise and power. Jones says, "One translator interprets the command, 'Be still, and know that I am God' this way: 'Be silent to God, and he will mold you.' Be silent to God, and he will make you become the instrument of his purposes. [In silence] an all-wise Mind will brood over your mind, awakening it, stimulating it, and making it creative."

God has a message in your wait, and in silence you can hear it clearly.

2. Wait hopefully

But the Bible reminds us to wait hopefully. "No one whose hope is in you will ever be put to shame … you are God my Savior," says Psalm 25:3,5. Biblical hope isn't a wishy-washy, "I hope this will turn out for good, but maybe it won't" attitude. Biblical hope is the confident assurance that God's in charge—no matter what.

We can have the same hope the Old Testament patriarch Abraham had awaiting the fulfillment of God's promise he would become the father of many nations. The Bible says, "Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed … he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead … yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised" (Romans 4:18-20).

3. Wait obediently

As we wait on God, we must stay obedient. When the wait is too much to bear, surrender it to God and remind ourself that we have given it to him. He'll come through.

Psalm 119 voices a servant's cry. The Psalm brims with the promise that those who obey God's statutes will be satisfied. They will not wait in vain. While you wait, live according to God's Word, seek him, and meditate on his message.