The Art of Spiritual Waiting

The Art of Spiritual Waiting

Waiting is -as we all know- hard. But if we see it as an art form or a spiritual practice it gets easier. Not easy but easier. I find it helpful to use the distinction found in the New testament between chronos time and kairos time. We are familiar with chronos time, something we can measure with clocks and calendars. But kairos time is more essential when we learn to practice the art of spiritual waiting. Kairos is the God’s time zone. Waiting for God is waiting for kairos, the supreme moment when God intersects with our lives. Kairos is the moment when God’s will happen. Kairos is when the right things happen in the right time.

But me, I’m not giving up.
   I’m sticking around to see what God will do.
I’m waiting for God to make things right.
   I’m counting on God to listen to me.
(Micah 7:7,MSG)

As we mature as Christians we learn to wait for God’s time. We might have tried to run ahead of God and faced the consequences. We might have been stressing out while waiting and later learned that it did not help the matter at all. The more we experience kairos moments the readier we are to wait for God no matter how long it takes. The more we practice spiritual waiting the more natural it becomes.

But God’s not finished. He’s waiting around to be gracious to you.
   He’s gathering strength to show mercy to you.
God takes the time to do everything right—everything.
   Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones.
(Isaiah 30:18, MSG)

The key element for peace and patience while waiting is hope. If we live in grace and embrace God’s promises to us we are filled with hope and we enter into the eternal time zone. When we joyfully anticipate God’s work in our lives we trust God and let go of worries. Then we are free to serve and faithfully prepare for the future while we are waiting. Because if something is already true in God’s realm it is just a matter of chronos time for it to happen in our lives. When we let God be God we are free to be humans, to live fully and love dearly.

 

Gracious God,
We want to learn to wait for you.
Help us to cast all our worries to the feet of the cross.
Enable us to always live in hope.
Free us to be fully alive in you.
So that your time would be our time.
So that your will would be our will.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen

Q4U: What are you experiences of spiritual waiting?

Be blessed and encouraged, my fellow pilgrim, as you wait for the Lord to answer! It will happen! When the time is right!

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