Waiting On The Lord When You Don’t Get An Answer

Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord! ~Psalms 27:14

When Waiting Feels Frustrating

There have been times when being a Christian is just so infuriating. You know who God is, you know what he is capable of, you know that he loves you, and you trust completely in his plan. 

But where is the answer to your prayer?

You can pray for years with no answer. You can pray desperately, consistently, and still it appears that the answer is silence. 

God hears your prayers, and he is choosing for you to wait. 

A Self-Focused View of Prayer

And that’s frustrating. We want answers now. We did all the things right, it seems like there should be a reward for our efforts. 

Ultimately, this is just a very self-focused view of prayer. We put in the work, and therefore, God should answer our prayers. Is God just a genie who is at our beck and call?

No. He’s the God of the Universe whose wisdom is so infinitely beyond our mind we cannot even comprehend it. He created the world with the power of his words. The fact that he chooses to listen to our prayers is a miracle enough, let alone that he answers them. We are but a speck, but he has lifted us and called us his children. He loves us enough to listen and to answer. 

We Are Not Owed an Answer

We are now owed an answer, we are not owed anything in this life.

However, in His grace, He has chosen to listen to us. And sometimes His answer is that He wants us to continue to trust Him and keep seeking Him. His plan is so much better than our plan, and we need to be able to have the faith that His plan is the best, not ours. 

Which is sooooo much easier said than done. 

Personal Struggles with Waiting

Recently, my husband and I have been going through a very transitional period of our lives, and we’re not sure where we’re going to end up. We know that God has a good plan, but we have no clue what it is. I keep telling people I wish I could just fast forward the next couple of months because the stress of this time is getting to me. But I trust that God sees me, He hears my prayers, and His will will be done. 

So, right now, God’s answer has been that I need to sit and wait, trust in Him even when I can’t see him working, and rest in Him. 

Why Waiting Is So Hard

And honestly, I have been pretty terrible at that. Which is probably what He is trying to teach me. I need to wait on Him and His timing rather than trying to rush things for my agenda. 

I think being told to “wait” brings up many emotions in humans as well. My toddler sometimes screams when told to wait because she doesn’t want to. As adults, we don’t scream, but we do get angry. 

Early in my walk, I used to think that God couldn’t handle my anger, but that’s simply not true. If God and I are truly going to have a relationship, sometimes that means that we aren’t going to see eye to eye. Ultimately, I conceded that I am not as wise as God and apologize, but he can handle my emotions, even my anger. Just like other relationships I have, it is far better for me to tell God that I am angry at Him and work it out rather than bottle up those emotions. He can handle it, I promise. 

God Can Handle Your Emotions

God can handle me, even when I’m a lot. It doesn’t come as a surprise to him. He doesn’t want me to withdraw because I am ashamed of my human emotions, but come to him and be able to talk through them with him.

The Blessing in the Waiting

Being told to be patient or to wait for God’s answer is incredibly difficult. The process itself is sanctifying. But the outcome is so much sweeter than we could imagine. The times in my life where I have chosen to wait for God’s perfect timing have proven to be some of the best moments of my life.

So don’t lose hope. In light of eternity, this is but a blink of an eye. God’s plan is far superior, and there will be no drawback to trusting in the Lord and seeking him.