In 1989 the rock band Queen sang “I want it all and I want it now!”. Increasingly this seems to be the anthem of today’s age!
The world seems to move faster and faster and we often demand immediate results. We have instant chat, fast food, even drones delivering goods faster. When we are forced to wait; queuing for a ride at an adventure park, queuing to buy concert tickets or for entry to a football match, we usually believe it’s really worth the wait!
With God, we may have to wait days, months, years, or even decades for a prayer to be answered. In the bible we see many examples of people of faith waiting for God’s time to be right. King David wrote in Psalm 27:14 “Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.” At the time David was waiting to be rescued from his enemies, yet he thought waiting for God’s time important enough to note it twice in one verse!

Noah spent decades building an ark as he waited for God to reveal what was to happen. Joseph stayed faithful in prison for several years before his promotion to the second most important person in Egypt. Ruth travelled to a new land with her mother-in-law after her husband’s death before God delivered His promise. God is faithful. In Psalm 145: 13 we read that “The LORD always keeps his promises”.
As we wait, God works! Just because something specific isn’t happening at this moment doesn’t mean that God isn’t moving. As we wait, it’s best to look for His hand in our lives by reading His word and better understanding His plan for us by praying about it, by praising Him for what He has already given us and by serving others as He asks of us. Waiting takes … and builds faith.
Equally important is the realisation that not everything we ask for; God will give us. Though Queen sang “I want it all” we need to accept that not everything we want is good for us and realise God knows best!
Psalm 139 gives us an insight into just how much God knows about us. “He knows your place in His creation” (vs.2) and “He knows our very thoughts.” (vs.4) I find it amazing that the Creator God knows where we all fit into His world, and He knows our thoughts!
Psalm 103 “God is good because he loves us and wants what’s best for us.” (vs.8)
No matter what you’re facing ask God to grant you what’s best for you, for patience to wait for His time and to trust that He is in control of your future. When God grants these prayers, you can be someone who waits well, and you won’t need to expect to have it all or to have it now.
“So let’s live it all, yes live it all, and let’s give our all, yes, give our all.”