While driving back to Atlanta this past weekend, I experienced divine waiting. My travel partner (Dr. Robinson) and I were engrossed in a deep discussion about Isaiah 40:31 (will share more later) when I looked down at the fuel gauge which screamed, “I am almost empty!” As I look up, a gas station flies by. Then, the low fuel alarm goes off in the car. Panic enters the vehicle when I realize that we are on a stretch of highway with few exits with gas stations. My mind begins to race; How many miles before we run out? How far is the next gas station? Should I turn around and go back to the previous exit? I resolved it was too dangerous and illegal to turn around. Dr. Robinson calmly turns the page of the Georgia newspaper and says, “We’ll have to wait for the next one.” So we wait. 5 miles later no gas station. I slow down my speed to conserve gas. 10 miles and still no gas station. The fuel gauge is on E. I begin to use the down slope of hills to maintain speed and conserve gas. 15 miles and still no sign of petro. I am getting anxious. Then, His peace comforts me as I am reminded of how God delivered me out of the same circumstance 7 years prior. Finally, 20 miles later, a gas station appears. Those 20 miles taught me some valuable lessons about waiting. Lately, I have been doing an awful lot of waiting. In response, I have been meditating on Isaiah 40:31:
” But those who wait on the LORD
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.”
I have discovered that waiting can be divine waiting when you focus on God. There are 4 phases of divine waiting:
Phase 1: Who are you waiting and Who are you becoming? Many focus on what they are waiting for (e.g. money, spouse, opportunity). In waiting for the “whats” of life, you get frustrated and complaint flows from you lips like venom. However, when you wait on the Lord, your strength is renewed. Why is your strength renewed? It is because God uses waiting to reform, transform, and conform you into His image.
Phase 2: Waiting causes you to check your attitude. If you have a bad attitude before the blessing, you are going to have a bad attitude after the blessing. One of the five reasons that God had the children of Israel in the wilderness for 40 years for a 11 day journey was because they murmured or complained about everything. I am tired of this manna and quail. I miss Egypt. Those who complained did not enter into Canaan. It was Joshua and Caleb who had great attitudes that entered into the Promised Land. Here’s the principle: Your attitude determines your altitude. When you adjust your attitude, you then “mount up wings like eagles.” Eagles have a different perspective. Eagles have a vantage much similiar to God. They fly high and look low. Joshua and Caleb had a different perspective relative to the other 10 spies that explored Canaan. When you get God’s perspective about your waiting, your vision expands, energy is released, and expectancy increases.
Phase 3: Divine waiting produces inspiration. Inspiration is the act of inhalation; the drawing in of air. You begin to ingest the breathe of God. That is why you are able to “run and not be weary.” God will breathe on you and you will begin to prepare for what God has promised you. You become like Noah who built the ark 120 years before even one raindrop touch the earth. Imagine the discouragement he endured for 120 years. Building a vessel that currently was not needed. Oftentimes, God will give you an answer to a problem that has yet to be created. People will call you crazy. The devil will send people and events to exasperate you. But God will supply the inspiration needed to overcome the world.
Phase 4: The final phase of divine waiting is transcending. You will transcend whatever you are waiting. You will begin to know more clearly who and what God has called you to be. You will begin to trust God even when you cannot trace Him. You will begin to know that He is God. You will begin to know that you are His chosen vessel. You grow from believing to knowing. “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.” “And we know, that all things work together for good…”
Who-Attitude-Inspiration-Transcending
I’ll leave you with a story that shows what can be produced during divine waiting:
One day Virgin Records founder Richard Branson called a low-cost carrier called People Express to book a reservation for a flight. He was promptly placed on hold – and was left there for what seemed like hours. “Either,” he thought, “they’re incredibly busy or incredibly inefficient.” In either case, he was inspired to launch a rival airline: Virgin Atlantic.
Keep fighting for your dream!
