Waiting

By Lynn Jaguar

Waiting is not an easy thing to do, and especially when we don’t know how long we have to wait. We want to see things happening, we want to see progress, we want to see results- as quickly and as easily as possible. Even when we pray, we want prompt answers, and if not, then at least we want to know that God somewhere out there has heard us, and we want to know when and what He’s going to do about it. But it hardly ever happens that way. Most times, for most of us, once we pray, we wait. Many times we don’t know for how long we have to wait. This book seeks to find encouragement from biblical stories that relate to waiting and the lessons we can learn and apply in our own journeys of waiting.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lynn Jaguar
• Release date: Mar 2, 2016
• ISBN: 9781311846211

Lynn Jaguar

Lynn is a passionate follower of Christ. She doesn’t claim to be a Bible expert but desires to share her meditations in writing.

Book preview

WAITING

(between the amen and the answer)

By Lynn Jaguar

Copyright 2016 Lynn Jaguar

Smashwords Edition

Thank you for downloading this ebook. You are welcome to share it with your friends. This book may be reproduced, copied and distributed for non-commercial purposes, provided the book remains in its complete original form. Thank you for your support.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface

Chapter 1: Why not me?

Chapter 2: Why Me?

Chapter 3: Eyes on the promise

Chapter 4: Passing or failing the test

Chapter 5: The devil we know

Chapter 6: Exploring the promise

Chapter 7: Transforming the shepherd into a king

Chapter 8: The bigger picture

Chapter 9: In the opposite direction

Chapter 10: The pot and the potter

Chapter 11: Against the Current

Chapter 12: Remaining Faithful

Chapter 13: Get over yourself

Chapter 14: A step of faith

About the author

Preface

Anyone who has ever made a prayer, anyone who has ever wanted something from God, and anyone who has ever needed help from the Lord, knows something about waiting. Whether we are waiting for a baby, a marriage partner, a job, finances, healing, favor, a home, reconciliation with a loved one or anything else, waiting is not easy, and it was never meant to be. But why does the Lord make us wait, and sometimes for so long? This short book looks at the people in the bible who had to wait on the Lord, and the lessons we can learn from their stories.

When I look at my own life, and the life of those close to me who have also trusted the Lord for something at one point in their lives, then I know for sure that waiting for an answer to prayer is not easy. It’s a journey filled with faith and fear, hope and doubt. Sometimes the Lord answers us instantly, or within a short period of time, but other times we can wait for months or even years. Without patience and perseverance, we can’t make it to the end of this journey. We constantly feel that if the Lord was to fill us in on when he plans to answer us, or at least let us know what’s going on behind the scenes- keep us informed, then it can be easier to wait. But the Lord rarely gives us the details, all that’s required of us is to ask, and then- wait.

What sometimes hurts the most when we have to wait is that some of those things that we ask of the Lord seem so readily available to the others who do not even need to pray for them. The only other way that we can get some of these could involve a compromise to our faith and character. There are women who’ve prayed and fasted for babies, when at the same time there are those who can count the number of times they’ve had an abortion, for them conceiving and carrying a pregnancy is as easy as eating candy. Then there are those who dump their babies in all sorts of places and walk away. What would be a miracle to you is a nuisance to them.

This is definitely not fair. All God has to do, if He is short of power, is to simply take what someone else has no need for and give it to the one who’s earnestly praying for it. Right? Why does the Lord have to make it so hard for some of us, when others seem to have it so easy?

I grew up desiring to be a flight attendant. I love traveling, I love living in big cities and I love the lifestyle that comes with the job. Over the years, I applied to several airlines and got invited for several interviews, but I failed each of them. I prayed, trusted the Lord and even had the faith (at least the one as small as a mustard seed). But it never worked for me and it’s a dream I’ve had to painfully let go of because I’m past the desired age. One friend of mine, who cared nothing about being a flight attendant, threw in an application one day, got the interview and passed- all in one try. It took me almost a year to get over my bitterness with the Lord.

Back to top

PART ONE: IT’S ALL ABOUT ME

Chapter 1: Why not me?

It is very rare to meet someone who is truly content with what they have - whether in riches or in poverty, whether in health or in sickness. We will occasionally meet people who seem to be at the peak of their lives and are excited and grateful. But this is usually a season that only lasts for so long. We are constantly in need of something throughout our life’s journey. The content of the majority of our prayers are personal requests for the betterment of our lives or for the lives of our loved ones. The magnitude and urgency of each need varies with every person.

Even when our prayers are answered, it will only be a matter of time before other needs come up. Take the example of a woman deeply desiring to get married, and she has prayed and fasted for quite a period of time for a mate. Then the Lord answers her prayers. Her only prayer now is for good weather and for everything to go as planned on the wedding day. The Lord answers that too. Several months down the line, there is trouble with conception, and a new prayer item comes up. This becomes another season of desperate prayer, and the woman is willing to go to any depths in order for the Lord to answer her.

A few years pass and there’s a testimony. The woman is amazed at the faithfulness of God, and is ready to encourage people that indeed the Lord answers prayers. In the process of the child growing up, many other incidences that call for prayers arise. Other children come up as well, each with their own set of challenges. Probably the marriage has come to a thorny point and needs divine intervention. Health issues, family issues and financial challenges develop- the list is endless.

From the point of our birth to the point of death, there will always be something to pray about. We, as Christians, can never be without need of something from the Lord. Our issue with God is not that He is not able to give us what we desire (we know He can), but that he seems to delay intentionally and we cannot understand why.

I do not know about you, but there are many times I’ve looked around and wondered why the Lord seems to answer other people’s prayers with greater speed and ease, when I am left trying to correctly mix the formulae to have my prayers answered. When we look at things on a comparison basis, we are bound to feel bitter and desperate.

When we are in need of something, and especially if we have been praying about it for a while, it’s very easy to fall into the temptation of looking around and comparing ourselves with others. We wonder what they did to for the Lord to answer their prayers so that we can also do the same things. Other times we feel that they don’t deserve those things, at least not as much as we do. What probably hurts us the most is when we hear unbelievers praising the Lord for His kindness toward them. The prophet Jeremiah also found himself in the same dilemma (Jer.12:1-2).

I have seen unbelievers, or those who are not too committed to Christ (in my opinion), praising and thanking the Lord for answered prayers. It’s not like they fasted and prayed, and if they did pray, it must have been one of those quick by-the-way prayers; most likely not as intense as our own. It leaves us wondering what exactly goes on in heaven.

Forget unbelievers. Some believe that the reason the Lord keeps us waiting is that we may know Him more, or that we may learn a particular lesson. This rarely makes sense to us because we wonder why it is us who have to learn the lessons. Other times we are told it could be that if the Lord were to answer our prayers, it would not be best for us. How come that the same God seems to answer someone else’s similar prayer? Why is it best for them but not for us?

Earlier in my walk of faith, when going through seasons of discouragement, I would think of the Lord as a father who favors some of his children over others. It may reach a time when we start to think that we must not be praying right or long enough; that we are not fasting enough. Other times we start to wonder if possibly we are cursed, or if there are wicked alters and evil covenants in our life or in our family.

One thing I have come to realize is that the Lord deals with us individually, depending on His particular plans and unique purposes for our lives. He also deals with