“Your word, Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens” (Psalm 119:89 (NIV)
While I have not done the count manually, I have no reason to doubt the estimated figure I found in my AI research: that the Bible records 8810 total promises of God, including 7487 to 7500 direct promises God makes to mankind.
While these promises may be of general application, they may also be embraced as applicable to specific circumstances in one’s life.
What I am concerned with today, is not that God speaks to us as individuals, or that He is trustworthy, for after all, Scripture gives the assurance that God will not fail in any promise, because His word is eternal and settled forever. Furthermore, we can trust in the inherent goodness in God’s plans for His children (Jeremiah 29:11).
However, the uncertainty that is inherent in embracing a promise in God’s word, which may be far removed from the reality of a believer, or worse, may appear to be the direct opposite of their expectation, is what creates the in-between place: that interspace between God’s promise contained in His word (which one embraces), and its manifestation in one’s life. It is a place which may be both confusing and disheartening, as well as laden with anxiety.
What is one to do in that in-between place?
Having to wait for God to deliver on a promise is nothing new, nor is the attendant anxiety, bewilderment and concern where there is perceived delay according to one’s own projected timeline.
Scripture counsels: “Wait on the Lord” (Psalm 27:14a). What is involved in that exercise?
It is apparent from the experiences of heroes of the faith – men and women who walked with God in their generations – that ‘waiting on the Lord’ refers to an attitude of settled trust and confidence in God’s loving heart and capable hands. The recorded experiences of how their faith was tried and tested before God fulfilled what He had promised – in His way and according to His timing – tell the same story; that God has both the power and the will to bring about the fulfilment of what He promises.
The outworking of this required attitude of complete reliance on God to bring about His plans and purpose, will require you to:
Wait… In Persistent Prayer
The heroes of faith we have spoken about did not tread paths filled with roses, they did however receive what was promised after they learned to wait as they prayed and trusted God – in hope and in obedience. So must you. When you have wearied yourself praying and trusting God to fulfill His promise, with no visible results, the answer/intervention you seek does not lie in giving up, but in continuing in them until you see God’s hand.
We have the license to ask God to fulfil His promise and to keep asking until He does it.
There appears to be a widely-held view that the continual asking for anything from God is evidence of a lack of trust. It is evident that the said view (or doctrine) is contradicted by Jesus’ own teaching on what should be our attitude to prayer. Jesus told his disciples a story/parable about a widow whose persistence in seeking justice against her adversary, moved a judge who had no fear of God or respect for man (therefore no reason to feel any pressure) to grant her request – simply because she refused to give up asking (Luke 18:1). In that parable, Jesus echoed what the prophet Isaiah told the ‘watchmen’ of the country of Judah: “You who call on the Lord, give yourselves no rest… and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth.” (Isaiah 62: 6b-7)
Pray, without ceasing, until God speaks or acts.
Wait… In Praise
David understood the power of praise while he waited for God’s promise to come to fruition. His praise, in both good and bad times, and his total reliance on God during the years between his anointing as king, and his ascension to the throne of all Israel, are recorded in the Psalms. In Psalm 18, he recounted acts of God’s deliverance and faithfulness in the battles he had had to fight, even as the promised throne remained out of his reach.
In Psalm 34, he praised the trustworthiness of God right after he had escaped almost certain death at the hands of the Phillistine king, with no promised throne in sight, only the ire of King Saul who sought to kill him. In Psalm 27, he relayed his trust in the God who had been not only his light but also is salvation in times of trouble, and in Psalm 23, he recounted God’s total care over him even in difficult times – laying a table before him in the presence of his enemies.
Your praise reveals your faith in the in-between place.
Wait… In Obedience
Joshua 6 records a bizarre battle strategy God gave to Joshua for the conquest of Jericho, a settled, walled city which had to be conquered by the children of Israel, a motley group of former slaves. He was told to get the people to get their armed men to march around the city once for six days, and to march around the city seven times on the seventh day with the priests blowing trumpets. Joshua’s unquestioning obedience to God in what did not make sense militarily, led to the conquest of the land God had promised to the people of Israel (Canaan).
Your obedience reveals your confidence in His promise.
Wait… In Expectation
After sitting, talking, and eating with Jesus, listening to His instructions regarding the Kingdom of God for forty days after His resurrection, the Lord’s disciples had received a commission to preach the good news regarding the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and what that meant for the salvation of the world. The disciples had received their commission; what they lacked was the power to accomplish the lofty purpose.
As Jesus had instructed them, they waited for the Holy Spirit with no idea as to when He would arrive. They gathered each day, in the upper room to wait in expectation through prayer. Ten days later, the Holy Spirit did come, and that was what equipped them to carry out their mission and to spread the Gospel of Christianity.
After Apostle Paul’s encounter with the Lord on the road to Damascus, he spent three days blind, and not knowing what the future held for him. In that period in which he waited for Jesus who had spoken to him on the road to speak further and show him his next steps, he had to wait in hope. He did so, committing himself to prayer. As he prayed, his answer came to him in the form a vision: the visit of Ananias through which he received his sight, got baptised, and commenced his new life as a commissioned apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Your expectant posture reveals your confidence in His ability to fulfil His promise.
The End of the Matter Is…
Pray, without ceasing; praise Him even when you do not see Him at work on your behalf; trust Him; obey Him, and hope in His goodness and faithfulness, as you navigate the in-between place, waiting for Him to show up with an answer to your prayer.
God’s faithfulness is the outworking of His character (2 Timothy 2:13). You can therefore trust Him to deliver on what he has promised in His word.
After all, as the Apostle Paul explained to the Church at Corinth, He has the resources to fulfil every promise He has made “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ…” 2 Corinthians 1:20 (NIV). He has not told you to seek him in vain (Isaiah 45:19), therefore your invitation is to take His word at face value, even in that in-between place.
