Waiting for Help

“I waited patiently for the Lord’s help; then he listened to me and heard my cry. He pulled me out of a dangerous pit, out of the deadly quicksand. He set me safely on a rock and made me secure.” ‭‭Psalm‬ ‭40‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭

I am that person. The one who waits impatiently for help. The one that hasn’t asked for it, but instead waits for it to magically appear. I know this anticipation is a trained response from childhood; feeling no one cared to help but always wanting it to come. I, at times, expect others to read my mind, see my need, and swope in to save me.

I am, more often than not, left disappointed. Then I hastily take things into my own hands. I get that victim mentality that I am the only one that can meet my needs. I am the only one I can count on. If I want something done, I have to do it myself. I know it is not an accurate picture of my life now; still that faulty wiring sometimes reconnects and causes havoc in my life.

As I read in my devotion today, from Paul David Tripp, New Morning Mercies: a Daily Gospel Devotional, he wrote: “In grace, He leads us where we didn’t plan to go in order to produce in you what you couldn’t achieve on your own.” that reminder was clear the Lord always comes through. Where I am at is never a surprise to God. Sometimes He is the one that led me to the path. He has a plan and purpose for every step, even when I am the one that got myself in the pit with the quicksand. With God, sometimes I also get impatient because there is generally a span of time between Him hearing my cries and me receiving His help. He leaves me in the pit longer than I want. I feel like I am sinking beneath the sand and He hasn’t stretched out His hand to save me.

I am still working on the patient part in waiting for His help. Sometimes I hear His voice, calling from the distance. Other times, it is eerily silent until I hear his footsteps or feel His presence. In my experience, He always comes through. Every single time, He sets me safely on the rock and makes me feel secure. He has never failed to help me, in His timing. Yet, there is a lesson in the grace of the wait. I grow more in the waiting than I do in the security. My character is refined. I learn areas where I have been trying to hold back from allowing God to help me. I learn I can trust Him when I cry out, and that He will never make me wait longer than is necessary for Him to produce what is needed in my life for the next step.

Prayer – Lord I thank You that even when I am not patient, You are. Thank You for ALWAYS listening to me. Thank You that even in my silence, You know and heat the cry of my heart when words fail me. You are so faithful. I praise You for Your helping hand that pulls me out of the dangerous pit, even if it is a pit of my own making. I appreciate Your timing, even when it is not mine, that you rescue me from the quicksand before it takes me completely under. Thank you for the lessons that I learn in the waiting even when I end up in places I never planned to go. I am grateful that You lead me and that as you set me on the rock, you are securing in me what is needed to produce for Your kingdom what is needed for the plans and purposes You have for me life. Help me to surrender more quickly to Your process and allow You to lead me instead of always having to rescue me from my own self.