Be Quiet AND Wait?

A favorite scripture of mine is Isaiah 40:31. I learned it at an early age and we used to sing it in church when I was a teenager. It says this: They that wait on the Lord will renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as eagles. They will run and not grow weary, they shall walk and not faint. 

On one hand it makes you wonder if we get weary if we are truly waiting on Him. On the other hand, anyone who wonders that about us is free to spend a day doing what we do.

On the other hand, we have to question what waiting on God might really mean. When my son first had the accident, I waited in the ICU waiting room for God to ride in on His white horse and rescue us from this tragedy. He did not. But I waited.

But then of course this scripture doesn't say those who wait on the Lord will see Him come riding through on His white horse to rescue them from life, does it? Actually, it says when we wait we will find new strength. Maybe Psalm 62 can shed a little light on waiting.

In this psalm, David makes his declaration in the first verse when he says: My soul waits in silence for God only; from Him is my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold; I shall not be greatly shaken.  That's a powerful declaration. I think it's interesting that David is not only waiting on God, but makes it a point to say he's waiting in silence. 

But guess what caught my eye? Verse 5. He repeats the first few verses but it's a bit different. In the first verse he is declaring that he is waiting on God. By verse 5 he speaks to his soul - to himself and says directly: my soul, wait in silence for God only.

So what are we waiting on? Sometimes I feel like waiting is not silent nor done in patience. I feel more like a kid sitting on the edge of my seat waiting to see what God's going to come up with next. Makes me think of a phrase we use a lot - I can't wait - for this or that. But it is important that we wait silently - and patiently.

Isaiah 30:15 states Only in returning to Me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength. It seems we should wait for Him - and do so in a quiet confidence. We are confident that our redeemer lives. We are confident that He is guarding our souls. We are confident that He hasn't abandoned us - nor will He. We are confident that He is our refuge in any time of trouble....add your own points in here as He is our all in all. ( I am confident that God.....)

Today I will go forward in a quiet confidence knowing that He is with me and He will strengthen me for whatever I might face today. I will rest in the truth that He is in this for the long haul, and His mercies are constantly being renewed. I will purposefully quiet my soul and wait for His strength to be renewed in me. And I will trust Him for one more day. Will you join me?