I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, And in His word I do hope.
Psalms ‭130‬:‭5‬ NKJV

Waiting is not easy. We live in a rather instantaneous world. I can deposit a cheque to my bank account in a matter of seconds from my home, simply by taking a picture of it. I can download the new Imagine Dragons album in minutes (actually, I’m doing that as I write this blog). If someone recommends a book to me in a conversation, I no longer have to wait to find it in the library or in a physical bookstore, I can download a copy to my Kindle app as we speak. I can upload videos and pictures of my trip (say, to the Holy Land) in real time (ie as they happen). 

We are not used to having to wait. Waiting no longer comes easy to us. 

And yet, in the Bible, “waiting on the Lord” is a positive thing. It is an exercise of trust, an act of faith, a labour of love. If one waits on the Lord, one does so with sureness of His coming, with hope for His future, with love and respect for His timing. 

Lent, like Advent, is a time of waiting. It is a season in which we wait on the Lord. A season in which we do not rush to the end of the story, but willingly dwell in the in-between-time. We do this with patience and with confidence. We do this because there are things we can only learn in the in-between. There are things that we can only come to while we are waiting on the Lord. 

And we do this, because it reflects our belief that God is in control. That God is wiser than we are. That if God is making us wait, He has some very good reasons for it. We do this because we trust God. 

So may you wait on the Lord during Lent. May waiting strengthen your faith, teach you what you need to learn, and ultimately be a beautiful part of your journeying with the Lord. And may you always hope in His word.