Daily devotional, April 17, 2024 Summer Song

"Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!" 
Isaiah 30:18

Whenever I hear Bob Marley’s song entitled “Waiting in vain,” I feel like I am being transported into an island paradise. It gives me the perfect summer vibes. A closer look at the lyrics of the song though will make you realize that the song is kind of sad. Here goes a clip: “Tears in my eyes burn, tears in my eyes burn. While I’m waiting, while I’m waiting for my turn. See. I don’t wanna wait in vain for your love.” Sad, right?

As followers of Jesus, we will never be put in such an awkward, frustrating, and lonely position. We do not even have to wait for His love, because He first loved us — imperfections, weaknesses, sins, failures, and all!

"But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

Now, it is a totally different thing when we would say that it is taking too long for God to answer our prayers. Well, it may be a surprise to you but the moment He heard your plea, He responds to it right away.

The thing is He answers the best way possible, and since He has a drone-like view of our life and our world, His response will not always be the kind of answer we think it should be. And yes it may be unpredictable, but we can trust that His response will be for our own good.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your waysand my thoughts than your thoughts." 
Isaiah 55:8-9

As we wait for the Lord to answer our prayers, we should reflect on what He is possibly telling us. Is He telling us to wait because we are not yet prepared to get what we have been praying for? Is He telling us ‘no’ because what we have been asking for is not good for us in the long run? 

Either way, we should remind ourselves that our Creator knows what we need even before we ask Him. That He will do what is best for us. Since He is the Beginning and the End, and He made the blueprint of our lives, He knows the best course of action on a given situation we are facing.

"But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31

But how do we know His answer to our prayers? How do we know how much longer to wait and pray before giving up?

Well, we will know the answer by continuously praying to Him, and listening to what He has to say. When we have a loving relationship with our God, and we take time to communicate with Him and read and study His words, we will hear His answers. We will know His will and we will receive His guidance.

"My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand." 
John 10:27-28

Just like human relationships, forging a bond with our Lord and Savior takes time and effort. We have to prioritize Him in our daily schedule by setting apart time to pray to Him. We also have to dedicate time to read the bible and reflect on what is written on it and what the passages mean to our life and how we can apply it. We have to go worship Him on Sundays, and have fellowship with other believers who are also seeking Him. We must give him the center stage in our mind and heart.

"The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord." Lamentations 3:25-26

Thank you for reading through our devotional today. I invite you to ponder on Psalm 130 and Lamentations 3:21-33  to dig deeper on today’s topic.

Reflection Question: Are you still waiting for the Lord’s response to your prayer?

Conversation with the Lord:   Heavenly Father, thank you for assuring me that you are only doing what is best for me. Give me the confidence to just continue trusting in you and praying that my will be aligned to Yours. Amen.