Waiting is inevitable. We will all wait for something in our lives. Sometimes it will be excruciatingly painful, like waiting on God to grant a miracle, answer a prayer, or let us know He is near. And other times, waiting will solely be a bother. However, knowing how to embrace the delay well is critical—discover ten approaches today.
What Will it Take to Embrace the Wait?
Waiting requires patience, trust in God’s plan, and hope that life will be better one day.
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Can We Learn How to Be Patient?
I was packing up from teaching a mental health caregiver class when I noticed one man with a furrowed brow lingering a bit. He slowly approached me and started with, “I don’t want to be rude or anything, but these skills you are teaching are impossible. I want my child to be better today. Only someone like you with a lot of patience could do these skills. You must have been born with a tremendous amount of patience.”
His remarks caught me off guard. My face grew flushed, my hands sweated, and anger started to rise inside of me as I pondered my thoughts and how to respond.
Developing Patience in the Wait
My first thought was, You have got to be kidding. You think I was born with patience. Sir, I have put in the hard work to get to where I am today, and right now, it’s going to take even more to respond to you kindly.
I paused for a minute (something I learned to do) and kindly told the man, “Oh sir, I was not born with an ounce of patience—over the years, it has developed through hard work and lots of waiting. Keep trying, and don’t give up. Please give it some time, keep practicing, and believe me, your ability to find patience will improve. If I can change, I’m confident you can too.”
What Helps in the Wait
Maybe for some, it is as simple as choosing to wait well. For me, it took a lot more than solely a choice. It took practice and a few learned skills along the way. I don’t always embrace the delay well. However, when I do, it is because I am using the ten approaches below.
How to Embrace the Wait Well
1. Count Your Blessings
Having a heart of gratitude will make a difference. Make it a habit every day to take a moment and count what is good
Each November here at Embracing the Unexpected, we turn our heart towards gratitude with a thirty-day challenge. We hope you will join us. Visit our “Embracing 30 Days of Gratitude” to find out the details.
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
2. Live in the Present Moment
Don’t allow what you are waiting for to rob you of the present. Push away the constant thoughts that cloud your mind and take you away from the current moment.
Remember, two things can be true at this same time. You can wait for something, even in challenging circumstances and still find joy and happiness in the current moment.
Be in this moment and take in all it has to offer.
3. Put Your Trust in God
It is easy to say we trust God when life is going well. But in the delay, our faith will be tested.
When you don’t sense God’s nearness, rely on what you know about Him, not what you feel. He is near.
Remember, our Lord will take care of us. He has our best interest in mind. It may help to say it aloud and repeat it over and over again—
I trust you, God.
4. Find Community and Be Transparent
A community that understands your wait or a friend you trust is helpful. However, transparency is vital in those connections. Hiding reality will only take up precious energy.
God never anticipated we would do life alone. We need people.
5. Seek to Reach for a New Perspective
To gain new insight and a broader view, it might help to look at where we have been. Although we may feel our circumstances haven’t changed and life has stood still, the feelings may not be the truth.
Seek wise counsel from a trusted friend, pastor, or professional. They may have some valuable insights. Our perspective isn’t necessarily factual; it is merely our opinion based on what we see.
Looking back at the past sometimes helps us see how far we have come and that change has occurred. #wait #change #waiting Share on X6. Accept Your Current Circumstances
Acceptance of circumstances we don’t like can feel as if we are giving up on the possibility of change. Or like we approve of what is happening, and yet it is the first step towards transformation.
Nevertheless, getting stuck on not wanting things the way they are will only add to our misery and prolong the delay. Once we accept our circumstances, we can begin tackling how to handle the interim.
Acceptance is not giving in or give up.
Although acceptance of our situation may feel a little counterintuitive, it helps usher in the possibility of change. #acceptance #change Share on X7. Let the Time in the Wait Be a Gift
If I gave you a gift, would you open it? Will you consider the possibility that time might be a present, wrapped up in the wait? In your delay, you could meet a new best friend, rest, daydream, spend time with God, read, walk, people watch, and much more. Be creative!
We can still consider the time a gift even when waiting for something painful to subside like healing, someone else to change, or something you desperately need. Use the time to see what God wants us to learn. After all, God doesn’t waste anything.
An adjustment in our attitude is sometimes needed to see the wait as a gift of time. #wait #attitudeadjustment Share on XOpen the gift of time and let it shape you.
8. Give Back
Start finding ways to serve God and others in the delay. You will receive more than you ever give away.
We feel better when we help others.
9. Let Go of Control
Most likely, whatever you are waiting for is out of your control. Let it go. Put whatever you are waiting for in the palm of your hand and squeeze it as tight as you can. Then quickly open up your hands and fling them away from you in a gesture to give it all to God.
Let go and let God have control.
10. Take Good Care of Yourself
Sometimes this will mean doing what you don’t feel like doing but what you know is right. Consider writing out a list of what you would suggest a friend do for herself. Then do it.
You Matter!
Discover today ten approaches on how to embrace the wait when waiting on God. After all, we all end up waiting for something at some point in life. #waitingwell #embracethedelay Share on XYour delay may be painful, and the suggestions above will not wipe away the hurt, shorten the time, or help get you what you want. However, wouldn’t it be better to pull all of the joy, peace, and hope you can grasp out of the present moment. It may even make the journey a bit lighter.
We will all wait for something; however, how we do it is a choice. We can waste the waiting period and be in pure misery or embrace the delay well. What will you choose?
What would you suggest to someone who is waiting on God? How do you embrace the delay well?
Perhaps you are growing weary, waiting for a miracle. You might find our previous article in our series helpful—“Tired of Waiting for a Miracle: 4 Ways Toward a New Outlook.”
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This post was originally named and published under “When You Don’t Know How to Embrace the Delay” on July 31, 2018. This article was updated, and the name changed to “When Waiting on God: How to Embrace the Delay Well.”
It is encouraging to know we have a choice. May the Lord help us to wait well. And I appreciate your honesty, Maree Dee, “It took practice and a few learned skills along the way.” May we persevere until patience is a beautiful fruit in our lives.
Lisa, Thank you for your encouraging note. I love what you said, “May we persevere until patience is a beautiful fruit in our lives.” Praying this for both of us right now. Maree
Waiting and patience. I find that waiting has nothing to do with patience. Whether you are patient or not, you still have to wait. I find waiting on/for God has more to do with endurance than with patience. Enduring the endless absence of God. Enduring the endless silence of God. Enduring all our prayers not being answered. Whether we wait well or not, God is still going to ignore us and our needs.
God bless you, in Jesus holy name, Amen.
I agree whether you are patient or not, you still have to wait. But a little patience sure helps and when I put my trust in God.
I am so sorry you are enduring such a considerable wait, and God feels silent with so many unanswered prayers. I often pray for you that you will feel God’s presence and know you are not alone.
Blessings, Maree
Waiting is hard. Love these tips. I don’t think anyone of us is born with much patience. 🙂
Yes, I agree most aren’t born with patience; it is cultivated. But looking in from the outside,it seems some people have more. I know we only know each other online, but you appear to be a patient person. Maree
These are very good. We all have to wait sometimes. It seems I am often encountering people in Scripture who had to wait. How much better to do so in patience and faith–with God’s grace..
The people in the Bible sure did have to wait. I find God’s timing is quite different from ours. I vow your words, “better to do so in patience and faith-with Gods’s grace.” A big amen to that statement.
So hard. But so many lessons there when we learn to do it.
I agree, Lauren, so many lessons to learn. Thank you for reading. Maree
Live in the present moment is a message I continue to hear! I’m trying to do that. I tend to be focused on what’s next and miss what is.
I find it challenging to live in the moment too. I’m a planner. However, I keep trying, and it’s pretty darn rewarding when I accomplish it. I guess we have to keep practicing. Thank you for sharing. Nice to know I am not alone.
patience can be a hard calling. thankfully the Spirit gives us this gift and we don’t have to try to drum it up on our own. i’m so grateful!
I am right there with you, grateful for the Spirit. I hope your weekend was good. Thank you for taking the time to add your thoughts. Maree
Maree, Love this helpful reminder! Waiting is not my favorite but I have grown so much through it.
Mary, I am right there with you. In some things, I have learned to relish the wait. I love the extra few minutes to stop and breathe. I agree we sure do grow through the waiting. Blessings, Maree
I am smiling, because we thought we knew so much about delay in 2018!
Isn’t that the truth. We sure didn’t know what we were all headed into did we? Maree
Thank you for sharing my post. I loved yours. Maree
A thoughtful list. I might add: Keep moving in areas you can. I’m working on a new series: God takes the long way around – we may need to collaborate !
Sue, I am so glad you liked the list. “Keep Moving in areas you can” is an excellent addition to the list. Your new series sounds fantastic. I look forward to reading it. When will it start? Please sign me up to receive emails if I am not already subscribed. Maree
“Accept Your Current Circumstances”
ummmm…. might be my greatest challenge. =)
Thank you for your Godly wisdom born out of experience and waiting…
You shine~
Lisa
Lisa, Thank you for your encouraging comment. Yes, acceptance is difficult to learn. But once you do you realize it makes sense. However, it still can be a challenge for me. I first try to wish it were different. Hope you are having a wonderful weekend. Maree
Good advice Maree, waiting is the hardest but I’m so glad God waits & has patience with us!
Jennifer
Jennifer – I couldn’t agree with you more. God does have a ton of patience with us. Maree
Great post, Maree!
I especially loved #7. That’s one of those things that I DO know waiting is a gift, but I always thought about it in a round-about way. I never thought of it as a GIFT gift. Hope that makes sense. 😉
You are not alone. I used to despise waiting. As I respond to you, I am delayed 1 1/2 for a flight. I love the extra time. The old me would have been stomping around. Thank you for visiting. Maree
Oh, how I struggle with this!
Thank you for putting this out there, because it’s so easy to lose perspective when we’re in the middle of a waiting time. There’s no road map for delay, and our only source of hope and direction is what’s been laid down in Scripture for our instruction, so I want to stay close to Truth in preparation for the NEXT waiting time.
Yes, perspective can be a strange thing. The stories I could tell of when I thought my perspective was the “right” one and acted terribly. The best time to prepare for a wait is before you have to experience a delay. Thank you for stopping and adding your wise words to our conversation. Maree
You were right on target when you said it is easier to say than to do.
Maree, I look back and see God’s footprints in one of my deepest and most painful losses…..He has given me a home when I had no where to go…a good Christian friend opened her home to me even though she has struggles and problems of her own. That is what I call a true friend for life. I believe the Lord has put us together to share our burdens and make it lighter. We both were alone and needed a friend, a shoulder to cry on…Yes, we were not meant to do life alone and isolated.
Thank you for your time and posting this article.
I know the Lord will work out all the things that I went through the last 10 months of intense suffering and losses to bring something beautiful out of it. He will bestow upon me a crown of beauty for my many ashes.
Kalyani, I am so glad you can look back and see God’s footprints. What a beautiful way to say it. I am so thankful you met a good friend with a huge heart. I know she is lucky to have found you too. Life is easier when we have someone by our side.
Thank you for taking the time to read and leave a comment. Your story will help someone else. I love your attitude in knowing God will bring something beautiful out of your suffering. I believe it too.
Blessings to you,
Maree
I loved your point “Let your time in the wait be a gift.” powerful. thanks, Amy
Thank you, Amy. Of course, it is easier to say than to do. Praying you will let the time be a gift if you are in a season of waiting. Maree
These are good steps to take. Looking back I can see how God has worked so much good in times of waiting even though it was not obvious at the time. Remembering that can help change my perspective on other times of waiting.
Lesley,
I agree. If we can only remember all that God has done in the past, it will help the waiting. Thank you for sharing your wisdom here today. Blessings to you, Maree