Honestly, waiting sometimes feel like a seven-year famine and plagues. In reality, it’s not nearly as bad. I have been in a season of waiting, and it feels like it’s been forever. But I know if I don’t learn to wait with confidence, I may be in this season even longer.
Do you ever feel like God is trying to teach you a lesson, but you’re not having it?
Yep. That’s me. Right now, pushing against the lesson.
Like really, I am that person that has gotten a lot of her wisdom from hitting her head against the wall one too many times.
But I think after the 12th concussion, I would learn to be patient and know that my way is not always the best.
Particularly when it comes to romantic relationships.
Girl, just slamming my head against the wall with each guy that I pursued. Big hint: I sought hardcore Jezebel energy.
Thank God for redemption! But enough about my impatient, impulsive tendencies.
What Does It Mean To Wait With Confidence?
Honestly, I just learned this concept a little over a year ago.
Learning to wait with confidence takes practice and reframing the way you experience stillness. When you wait with confidence, you are:
- Content no matter the outcome.
- In control of your thoughts and don’t allow them to sway you.
- Free from the desire to control everything.
But most importantly, you have unwavering trust in God for your future, forfeiting the urge to take matters into your own hands.
Why Do We Struggle To Wait?
There are so many reasons why a lot of us struggle to wait. Especially us as women, as we carry the mantle for handling everything. We often get so lost in making things happen that we lose sight of the one who makes all things possible.
Some frustrations we have with the wait are:
- We have a timeline for our own life.
- We believe in the culture of this world, where time nor opportunity waits for no one.
- We fear that we will be left behind.
- We still have not accepted the reality of our present circumstances or situation. (and have not counted the blessings of today before striving for the gifts of tomorrow.)
- We allow the opinions of others to overpower, rush us or make us feel less than if we are waiting on God.
And I know you probably have felt one of these in your season of wait. But I’m here to tell you that your way of thinking can change. You can always grow and be better for your next season to wait with confidence.
In the next section, I share scriptures that have helped me in my waiting season to keep my mind set on things above while waiting.
How Do I Wait With Confidence?
Honestly, sis, we frequently make things more complicated than they have to be. A great deal of the changes we need to make in life all start with a choice. Below I will share five choices you need to make to wait with confidence.
Choose to trust and hope in God.
Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart be courageous. Wait for the Lord. Psalms 27:14
*Psalm 39:7
I’ve written a post on trusting God, so you know the focus is the have faith and believe that God has a great future for you. That doesn’t mean hardships won’t come; it just means they won’t last always.
We often look for God to pull us out of situations suddenly, but that’s never the case. He usually wants you to learn or grow from things in your life, so a waiting period will always come periodically in your life. Just like when a farmer has to wait for a harvest, we have to water and nurture the seeds in our own lives.
So seek the Son to help you go through the growing process while you wait.
Choose to wait quietly and not complain along the way.
Be silent before the Lord and wait expectantly for him; do not be agitated by one who prospers in his way, by the person who carries out evil plans. Psalm 37:7
*Lamentations 3:25
This point speaks for itself. Do you want to see how well you wait? Next time you are in the store, are in traffic or have an amazon delivery package delayed, examine how you react in the situation while you’re waiting.
We all know that person (could be yourself) that can not wait for anything. Someone that is always rushing, forcing, fussing, and complaining. This is not the way God asked us to wait. We are commanded to wait quietly. Remember, even though our tongues have power, nothing can come to fruition if God doesn’t ordain it. So don’t complain! Let go of control for once.
This is why when moves and cars get out of the way; I thank the Lord.
Choose to remember all the times God came through for you in the past.
They soon forgot his works and would not wait for his counsel. Psalm 106:13
I don’t know about you, but God has come through in significant ways in my past. Moments where I should have been dead, diseased, and exiled, He kept me. But often focus on what we don’t have and not on what God has already provided for us. We no longer allowing for God to be our first resort.
For this reason, I have started gratitude brain dumping most nights. This practice has helped me shift my focus to the Lord’s goodness that I’ve seen and not on the day’s heaviness. When was the last time you took the time to list the goodness of your day and the blessings we often forget to count?
Choose to focus on what God has told you and not what others are saying around you.
But I will look to the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me. Micah 7:7
*Ecclesiates 7:21-22
We are definitely in an era where opinions are more important than morals. But what I want you to receive from choosing this way is that God’s Word is pure. Other’s perspectives, including our own, are tainted due to sin.
When we focus on the things of God, we don’t focus on the desires and yearnings as much. I know for me, being transparent, I have a lot of passions. Sometimes a new one every week, but in the end, my track record of listening to myself and others has not gone well in the past. So to see something different in our lives, we must do things differently with God.
Choose to enjoy the process.
For the vision is yet for the appointed time; it testifies about the end and will not lie.
Though it delays, wait for it, since it will certainly come and not be late. Habakkuk 2:3*Phillipians 1:6
Okay, the scripture doesn’t directly align, but I find in the waiting, God gives us many visions. These visions he has called us to write down. So while you’re waiting, every revelation, every vision, every prayer, every answered prayer should be recorded.
I will be honest; I struggle with consistency in this area. But I ask Him to be my strength anyway. The cool thing is that majority of the blog post you read here are my writing on the tablet. So with you all, I am enjoying the process.
All in all,
I always hope these blog posts would get shorter, but I know I will be cutting you short of the wisdom God has for you. I hope this post will help you wait with confidence and receive the blessings that quick fixes can never bring.
If you need additional support on waiting with confidence,
I encourage you to reach out for a Confidence Chat.
If you are looking for a space to grow with other women pursuing better relationships with themselves, join our community of Confident Christian Single Mom Facebook Group of other single moms choosing to thrive.
And if you are not a single mom but want to stay connected with resources for confidence building. Join the new Women Seeking Confidence Facebook Group here.
