Waiting Has A Purpose

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life. Proverbs 13:12

This verse talks about two seasons of our life: a season of waiting and a season of fulfilment.

Inevitably all of us go through both these seasons in life.

All of us go through periods of waiting in our life. We keep hoping for the best things to come our way, although sometimes nothing seems to happen.

Not everyone waits for the same thing. Some of us wait for a long time to find a life partner, some to bear a child, some to get a job, some to buy a house, some to get a promotion… and we also wait for little things like at the hospital for doctor’s appointment...

Whatever the reason for the wait may be, King Solomon here says the season of waiting is not easy. In fact, he says it makes our hearts sick.

Again…nobody likes to wait. Waiting isn’t fun. It isn’t enjoyable. It’s hard. It’s discouraging, it’s confusing, it’s testing, it’s challenging.

But as Christians, we have a purpose behind our waiting. Maybe you don’t understand the purpose or you may even wonder what purpose is going to be there in this waiting, but God has a purpose.

And just as waiting is real, fulfilment is also real. King Solomon doesn’t stop the verse with Hope deferred makes the heart sick: Rather the verse continues but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.

As people who have hope in Jesus Christ, the period of waiting should not make our hearts sick. Why does God give this waiting period? What does He want us to do during the waiting period? There are three important things you and I need to understand or do during our periods of waiting.

1. God is preparing you for His purposes

During your waiting period, God is working on you. He is also working on your circumstance. He prepares you and your circumstances for the future He has planned for you.

Moses was 80 years old when he led the people of Israel out of Egypt. His first 40 years were spend in the palace and the next 40 years in the wilderness (A total contrast!). Why didn’t God call Moses to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt when he was 40 years old? By then, it was clear of Moses’ zeal for the Hebrews and his willingness to defend them. And Moses was clear of His calling. Why did God wait until he was 80?

There was a purpose. During those 40 years that Moses was in the wilderness, God was working on his character. At 40, Moses was young and energetic. However, his character was not refined. He was an angry man. He saw an Egyptian and a Hebrew man fighting and he killed the Egyptian. (Oh my God!) He saw two Israelites fighting, and he went to be their judge but was rejected.

Imagine if that same angry Moses had led the people out of Egypt. He probably would have killed half the stiff-necked Israelites himself!

So, it was important for God to work on his character. During those 40 years in the wilderness, Moses was becoming more and more humble. He was getting ready for God’s greatest call for his life. Rather, God was preparing Moses for a great task.

And you know how the angry Moses was later described in the Bible. Numbers 12:3 says, Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.

Look at the life of Joseph. He had a dream and a vision about his future from God. But everything that was happening in his life was completely opposite.

Imagine what would have been in Joseph’s mind when he first got the vision. He would have thought a day would come when God would exalt him in the land of Canaan and all his brothers would come down and bow before him. But God had a totally different plan. God wanted to exalt Joseph not in the land of Canaan but in the land of Egypt, so he can save the entire Egyptians and his own household from famine.

In order for that plan to be fulfilled, it was necessary that Joseph be sold, had to wait in prison until the day appointed by God. The prison experience helped Joseph to get closer to God. The prison experience was as necessary as God was preparing him for something far greater.

Or look at the life of David. David was anointed by Jessi when he was very young. But he did not immediately become king. He had to wait until he was 30 to become the king.

Do you know why? God was preparing David. David was a shepherd, not a warrior. Even when he fought with Goliath, he used a sling and stone. He used his faith to defeat Goliath. Nowhere later David used a sling and stone to fight his enemies. Because by the time He became king, he was a trained warrior. God used the period of waiting to prepare him to be the next King of Israel.