Wait For The Lord
Do we take the time to seek God’s presence every day? Do we confidently wait for the Lord when things just aren’t going our way? In Psalm 27, King David declared that we should “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!”
Wait For The Lord!
Today I’d like to read excerpts from Psalm 27, another written by King David,
“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? . . . One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple . . . Turn not your servant away in anger, O you who have been my help. Cast me not off; forsake me not, O God of my salvation! . . . Teach me your way, O Lord, and lead me on a level path . . . Give me not up to the will of my adversaries . . . I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living! Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!”
Things didn’t always go the way King David wanted them to. And we can certainly empathize—though maybe for far different reasons. We may never have had to flee for our lives and he did—repeatedly.
Yet, this warrior-poet-king still declared the Lord was his light and his salvation, the stronghold of his life. Many of the psalms overflow with confidence in God, confidence that was not dependent on circumstances.
Seeking God’s Presence
It’s pretty amazing that the one thing David asked of the Lord was that he would dwell in the Lord’s house and gaze upon his beauty, that he would inquire in His temple. He wanted to be in God’s presence.
Do we long for the same or do we take it for granted? Do we ever take the time to marvel that we can speak to God in prayer any moment of any day? Do we ever experience genuine awe that we can actually enter His presence, the presence of the Creator of the universe? Is it more than a point of theology that God is with us every moment of every day?
Things are different than they were in King David’s day. Before the Lord Jesus walked among us, was crucified, and rose victorious over the grave, God didn’t dwell among His people in the same way He does now. The Holy Spirit hadn’t come to permanently reside within believers. We must never become complacent about these truths.
God Will Never Forsake Us
You see, we need not pray as David did. We need not say, “Turn not your servant away in anger, O you who have been my help. Cast me not off; forsake me not, O God of my salvation!”
Born again believers in the Lord Jesus Christ are assured of God’s forgiveness and the fact that He will never leave nor forsake us, as it says in Hebrews 13:5.
We can, however, add our voices to David’s and ask the Lord to teach us His ways and lead us on the level path. He does so in the pages of His Word and as other believers expound upon the truths found there. We even learn His ways through the lyrics of songs that remain true to biblical teachings. I personally enjoy many of the Christian songs written in the last little while and often have them playing while I work at my computer.
Recognizing Our Adversaries
David’s adversaries were those who wanted to take his life. Those I battle every day come from within.
“I’ll check Facebook just one more time.”
“Just one more episode of that TV series.”
“I can do that task tomorrow.”
“I really should run those errands—right now.”
“Of course I should answer my texts right away—even the ones that could technically wait.”
“Hmm, I wonder what I can grab to eat.”
I know these things seem foolish, and they certainly are insignificant compared to running for one’s life, but the good I could accomplish will go undone if I give in time and time again.
Confidently Wait For The Lord
Will we, as individuals and families, declare God’s praises in the midst of difficult circumstances? Will we take the time to marvel at God’s greatness and His invitation to come into His presence? Will we identify our adversaries, whether those without or those within, and ask for victory over them?
The last verse of Psalm 27 says, “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!”
When things aren’t going as we want them to, will we confidently wait for the Lord? Will we teach our children what it means to be courageous while doing so? King David issued the imperative twice in this short verse. It must be important.
What do you think is a good way to “Wait on the Lord”? Contact us– we’d love to hear from you!
Steph Nickel
Steph Beth Nickel is eclectically interested and eclectically involved. In all she does, Steph seeks to nurture and inspire. She is currently working on the first book in a nonfiction series. Nurture and Inspire LOVE is a compilation of the first devotionals she wrote for HopeStreamRadio.
Steph is a freelance writer and editor. She is the coauthor of Paralympian Deb Willows’ award-winning memoir, Living Beyond My Circumstances, published by Castle Quay Books. Deb and Steph are working on a follow-up book.
You can visit her website, stephbethnickel.com, to learn more about her.
Visit Steph’s contributor’s page or at Steph Nickel’s Eclectic Interests.
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