waiting on the lord

Psalm 119:121–128 NKJV
121 I have done justice and righteousness; Do not leave me to my oppressors.
122 Be surety for Your servant for good; Do not let the proud oppress me.
123 My eyes fail from seeking Your salvation And Your righteous word.
124 Deal with Your servant according to Your mercy, And teach me Your statutes.
125 I am Your servant; Give me understanding, That I may know Your testimonies.
126 It is time for You to act, O Lord, For they have regarded Your law as void.
127 Therefore I love Your commandments More than gold, yes, than fine gold!
128 Therefore all Your precepts concerning all things I consider to be right; I hate every false way.  

Have you ever waited for God´s answer to your prayers so long that you have said or thought, “I don´t believe God hears me!” 

I have, and if you have walked with Lord for a while and cried out to Him across some years, there have probably been times for you, just like for me, that it takes a while to receive a clear word from the Lord.

When this happens, I think of what God said through Isaiah.

Isaiah 55:8–9 NKJV
8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.
9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.

Like many of you, I have experienced this more times than once, but I recall very clearly what was the most difficult wait on God´s response in my life.  It was when my oldest son was battling with addiction.

He was praying, at least off and on, and his mother and I were praying continually, at times every hour, day after day, for years.  We saw tiny moments of mercy but no overt answer from God.

I will take David´s prayer in this stanza and rephrase it as my own during that
time.

121 – Lord, I have tried to do what is right and best.  Please do not let the enemy have victory over me, my family, and my son!

122 – I need You, God, to guarantee a good outcome in this, because I cannot!  Please do not let those who despise You and hate me have the victory in this.

123 – I am wearing out my eyes reading the Scriptures, God, looking for the answer that is Your salvation for this problem and further instruction as to what we should do.

124 – God, I am keenly aware that none of us deserve Your deliverance.  I ask not on the basis of merit but call upon You for mercy and grace, for myself, my wife, for my son.

125 – Even in my not understanding why You delay in answering, Lord, I remain Your servant.  But I ask You to help me see what You are doing according to Your Word.

126 – (At some point of further crisis, I prayed) Lord, it is time for action!  We cry out to You to do something!  Others say Your promises are empty.

127 – But not me, God!  Not my wife, God!  We love Your Word, and we know Your promises are true and therefore more valuable than all the gold in the world.

128 – Even until we hear Your answer and see the work of Your hand, we know Your Word is right and good.  We want to follow no one else and nothing else.

Karen and I prayed like that for years.  Years and years!

​But one day, God answered.  Our son was delivered from his addiction and began to walk with the Lord.  We still pray for him as we do for ourselves, but a part of our prayers is always an expression of thanksgiving for the deliverance we prayed for so very long.

EMAIL BRO. MIKE