I’ve always been the kind of person who can’t relax until the to-do list is complete. And something that’s been left incomplete for weeks or even months, like overgrown flower beds or an appliance that keeps making that funny noise? Just walking by it sends my heart racing. I feel like it needs my attention now. Not tomorrow, not next week, right now. I don’t want to wait to have the satisfaction of getting it done.

Why Does God Want Me to Wait? 
I used to be oblivious to the benefits of waiting. I felt like waiting meant doing nothing, not taking any action. It never seemed like a good thing.

Waiting for ten days for the doctor to call with test results.  

Waiting for an editor to call me back with an acceptance or rejection.  

Waiting for that wayward loved one to text.  

Waiting always brought a whole load of negative thoughts, and if I could avoid it, I would. Until I read Rahab’s waiting story and learned there’s power in times of waiting.

Rahab’s Example of Waiting Well  
From the time Rahab hid the Israelite spies from the king’s men in Joshua chapter 2 until the time of her rescue, Rahab had a lot of waiting to do. The spies only gave her two conditions to the deal she made with them: One, she must tie the red rope to her window and leave it there. Two, she and her family had to stay inside the house.

The spies gave her no indication of how long it would take for them to return. All she could do was wait.

It’s hard to stay put and wait! Yet so often that’s exactly what God calls us to do. He has the plan worked out, and our interference can delay its fulfillment. I think about Rahab tying the cord to the window and leaving it there, indicating her trust in God to take care of her and her family. I also wonder if I’d have the same resolve in that situation. Or would I lose my patience and take matters into my own hands?

“I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope.” (Psalm 130:5 ESV)

This beautiful verse shows us that there’s power in waiting. Waiting for the Lord isn’t the absence of activity, it’s hoping in the One who never fails us. It’s taking action, even when that action is to be still. Like Rahab, adding action to our faith demonstrates our trust in God to provide.

How to Wait Well 
Waiting well shows I’m actively trusting God when I feel like I need to do something. And from Rahab’s demonstration of obedience through waiting, I’ve discovered the benefits of waiting well. Hope, trust, belief. Those things grow in us as we linger a bit and soak in all God wants to teach us in the wait.

After her time of waiting, God made good on His promise to Rahab. Joshua chapter 6 tells of Rahab and her family’s rescue from the rubble after the Jericho walls fell. From her time of waiting, we find inspiration for God’s promises to be fulfilled in our own lives, too. Inspiration to help us wait well when we’re tempted to get impatient and help God in our own strength.

Kristine Brown is an author, ministry wife, and educator. Her devotions and other writing can be found online at morethanyourself.com.