Waiting requires engaged senses

David gives us a glimpse into the secret of waiting on God's timing - something we all likely struggle with from time to time.  We want answers, but they just seem to not be coming - causing us to kind of wonder what our next step should be and almost taunting us with the desire to take a step outside of God's will by taking the lead instead of waiting.  We have all been there.  We would do well to face the waiting in the manner David does - with a certainty of heart.


Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in him. (Psalm 62:5 NLT)


We are to wait with all we have - everything that is in us must be engaged in the process of waiting.  Don't miss that - it is a PROCESS.  Think about waiting in line at the grocer.  You count the number of items in your basket, glance around for the shortest wait, and then get in line.  What throws us off sometimes is the PROCESS of the people in front of us in obtaining their purchases.  They may have coupons, need ice, or are purchasing an item with no price tag on it, necessitating another wait until the price can be located. Waiting is not for the faint-hearted.  Indeed, it takes what we least want to offer - everything!  We engage in the process of waiting only to the degree we invest in, or surrender to the process.  We cannot fully engaged in the process of waiting if only parts of us are focused on the process.


Waiting requires focus and determination simply because we could get so easily side-tracked in the waiting if we are not alert.  Why do you think the stores put all those things so close to the check-out lines?  It is to distract us in the wait and to appeal to our urge to get yet one more item before we leave the store!  A very practical illustration of waiting comes in us considering ourselves as stopped at a red light, foot firmly on the brake, but eyes diverted away from the light.  When our eyes are diverted, so is our mind.  What we experience next reveals our lack of focus - we hear the blare of the horns behind us - those who have not allowed their minds and eyes to wander.


What does the blaring of the car horn do?  It alerts us to change our focus, does it not?  We are suddenly jolted from our place of being disengaged in the process of waiting - we are experiencing the "startle-factor".  God doesn't want us going through life in the mode of requiring the "startle-factor".  In fact, he asks us to wait with all we have - engaged and remaining focused.


Engaging doesn't mean continual talking or activity - it often involves being able to stop long enough to become totally familiar with being quiet in God's presence.  Our enemy often fights hard to keep us out of a place of silence because he knows in the times of quiet his deception can be revealed the easiest.  If you have ever tried to be "stealth" in your movements, not making any noise so as to avoid detection - you know how difficult it is to even do one thing without the potential of discovery.  Imagine our enemy's plight when we finally get quiet enough to hear God's voice!


Satan wants to work in our lives - he is distressed when he has the potential of discovery.  David's tactics in waiting for God's movement included being very quiet.  When we get quiet long enough, it is easier to recognize the voice speaking and to determine its source.  David's last piece of instruction to us is to wait with a sense of hope.  Hope is best understood as the expectations we have for the answer.  


We will do well to adopt the same tact in our waiting.  We cannot expect too much when it comes to what God will do for those who wait with such determination and expectation.