Lessons Learned From A Season of Waiting On The Lord
(A Season of Transition)
Spiritual seasons come and go, just like the natural cycle of spring, summer, fall, and winter. And just like seasons of nature, seasons of the spirit are predictable in their unpredictability. Meaning we trust winter is ending soon and spring is coming. But we have no clue exactly when the transition will happen, how smooth (or difficult) the transition will be, or how long each season will last.
We all go through spiritual seasons but don’t all go through the same season at the same time nor do our seasons last the same amount of time. The person next to me might be in a season of harvest while I am in a dormant season, buried deep for a season of rest.
Why Do We Go Through Spiritual Seasons?
We can’t know the bright happiness of summer if we don’t have a clue about the dark emptiness of winter. God uses our time in these spiritual seasons to refine us, shaping us into the character of Christ. Unfortunately, we won’t always recognize why we are going through a particular season until we can look back and examine it with fresh eyes.
How Long, O Lord?
The season God puts us in can last a good portion of our life. Ultimately, the length isn’t up to us, but we play a part in how long we stay in a certain season. Our rebellion and unwillingness to submit are often reasons for our extended stay in a season. As I studied the lives of the saints that God had in seasons of waiting, It encouraged me to realize I could count on God to understand even when no one else did.
Nebuchadnezzar sat for 7 years as a madman (like an animal) due to his arrogance and rebellion toward God (Daniel 4:34).
The Israelites were in a season of learning obedience that lasted 40 years when God only intended it to last a small fraction of that time.
Moses was in a prolonged winter season that lasted years. God had moved him away from all that he was familiar with. Moses’ people back in Egypt probably thought the worst. Often, those closest to us can’t understand what we are going through.
Perhaps because of the enormity of what God had planned for Moses, God used Moses’ prolonged time apart to weeding out the Egyptian ideology he would have been taught while growing up. We can’t serve two masters so ungodly thinking and ungodly ways of dealing with people had to go before God could greatly use Moses.
In Genesis, Joseph had multiple seasons waiting on the Lord to move on his behalf. During that time he was shunned, forgotten, sold into slavery, spent time in prison, and falsely accused. His seasons lasted years, not a week or a few months.
Hannah waited years for her season of barrenness to pass (1 Samuel). Nobody understood Hannah’s situation; not her husband or the priest. You can read more about Hannah and her season of waiting by clicking here.
A Season of Waiting On God
I have just come through what felt like 4 straight seasons of winter; buried deep with growth that could only be seen by God. At times, being set apart was weary down to my very soul. It was tough, my friend. It felt like I was a three-year-old put in the timeout chair. The problem was I had no idea what I had done wrong (if anything) to be set aside like I was.
Many times, I cried out to God asking if I could get up and move on. I begged Him to either release me from this season or to help me endure with evidence of godly fruit. God always answered, but not with the message I wanted to hear. His answers were always versions of the same, “Wait. It is not time yet.” That was hard for me. I am a woman of action. I rarely sit still. Even when watching a show, I have to be doing something productive at the same time. It drives me crazy to do nothing.
I made many mistakes on the path to understanding what God meant by “wait.” I had heard in a teaching that to wait didn’t mean to sit and do nothing. It meant to keep going, doing what you have been doing until God tells you differently. Perhaps that teaching is sometimes accurate. But, as I learned the hard way, in this particular case that wasn’t what God wanted me to do. Not at all.
When I was feeling all spiritual, it was a comfort to know that God would use this season to prepare me for what was next. I was patient and enjoyed my time resting and leaning into Jesus. But, many times my flesh tried to take the leadership role over my spirit. I felt buried and forgotten, which birthed impatience in my flesh to move forward and make things happen! A God-helps-those-who-help-themselves type of thing (which is unbiblical, by the way).
Things Changed
So waiting on God is what I did. During this time, I changed my quiet time routine. Without my realizing it, my thinking began to change too.
The Holy Spirit showed me what He wanted my season of waiting to look like; not a season of busyness but a season of sitting in the green grass of Psalm 23 abiding at the feet of my Lord. As Psalm 131 says, I had to still and quiet my soul before God. Which is what He wanted me to do from the very beginning! I thought I was doing the godly thing to keep moving and doing but often what we hold tightly to is often the very thing God needs us to submit to Him so that we can be transformed.
God didn’t want my constant busyness. He wanted my undivided attention. It took a lot for me to realize that.
So, I made time to pursue deep spiritual rest by soaking my soul in the Word. I wasn’t quite sure about a lot of things during this time, but I did my best to pull up my big girl pants (or as God said in Job, “Gird up your loins like a man.”) and stood my ground through time in Scripture and times of praise and prayer.
Yep. Even when I didn’t feel particularly spiritual (or thankful).
I did it anyway because I felt I needed to take responsibility to dig deeper into God’s Word, whether He released me from this season of transition or not. I’m sad to say that it took me way too long to stop looking everywhere except Scripture for comfort and reassurance. I can see now that was a big part of why God wanted to teach me to sit still and abide at the feet of my Jesus.
Scripture
As I purposefully tuned out all the outside noise, I began to hear God speaking to me through the voice of Scripture. Using an old notebook, I began to journal what I felt God was sharing with me in regard to a particular verse. I randomly picked a handful to share. As you will see, many of the Scriptures came in pairs but they all reinforced God’s message to abide and wait on Him.
“Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him. Do not fret when men succeed in their ways when they carry out their wicked schemes.” (Psalm 37:7)
“Wait for the Lord and keep his way. He will exalt you to inherit the land; when the wicked are cut off, you will see it.” (Psalm 37:34)
Everything is in God’s timing, not mine. He knows the exact moment that is best for my situation to change. He knows exactly when I have submitted to his will and desire instead of fighting for control. I have to be okay with that and not fight against Him by trying to manipulate things. Just because I see someone I don’t think is worthy of getting the blessing I want doesn’t mean my thinking is correct. God sees us and knows. He’s in control of all things. I don’t have to fret that someone got the blessing meant for me. God has already made provisions to take care of every detail of my life. I can trust Him!
“Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the Lord: my cause is disregarded by my God?” Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall, 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 faint.” (Isaiah 40:27-31)
“I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you. I said, ‘You are my servant’. I have chosen you and have not rejected you. So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:9-10)
I can whine and complain all I want, but I need to remember that God is listening. He isn’t going to let me get away with speaking untruths. God is the creator of all things. When I am at my limit with exhaustion, I can call to him. He is the only one capable of strengthening me with a supernatural endurance that I can’t explain. God has called and welcomed me; He is mine and I am His.
Whatever I am going through, I only need to keep my focus on my God and not my circumstances. Jesus will personally hold me up when I can’t go on another moment. He doesn’t do it because He has an obligation to me. He gives me His strength because He loves me. Always and forever.
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because He cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7-7)
This verse turned out to be a real blessing during this time of transition. I could see that nothing would change for me until I changed. Not with half-hearted effort but real focus and determination to honor my Father.
However, that still isn’t a guarantee that just because I want it to happen God will move me on from this season and into whatever He has for me on the other side. Notice it says, “God may lift you up.” God does as He wills because He knows best. Regardless, I am welcome to share my troubled, anxious thoughts with Him trusting that He will help me deal with them.
“Be patient, then brothers, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.” (James 5:7-8)
Spiritual seasons point me to the day of the Lord’s coming. I live in a farming community. I can learn a great deal by watching the way the farmers prepare, plant, cultivate, feed, harvest, and process their crops. Even though they don’t know how each season will turn out, even though so much is out of their control, they continue to work their fields with patience and hope knowing the season of their harvest is coming.
“Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him. He alone is my rock and my salvation. He is my fortress, I will not be shaken. My salvation and my honor depend on God. He is my mighty rock, my refuge. Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.” (Psalm 62:5-8)
Honestly, I don’t think I need to explain why this verse ministered to my soul. I’m sure you get it.
Prayer
No matter how much I poured out my thoughts to God, He never got tired of hearing from me. Strangely, it was around this time that I began to struggle with prayer, especially when praying out loud.
Praying Scripture helped. (If you’ve never tried it, click the link here to read more about Praying Scripture.) Anyway, I tried to remember to turn my time in Scripture into prayers for others, not just for myself.
For example, if I was reading 1 Peter 1:13, “Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled: set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.” I didn’t automatically pray, “Prepare my mind for action….”.
Instead, I tried to remember to pray for someone else first. “Lord, I bring ___ before your throne. Lord, prepare their minds for the action you want them to take in their situation. Help them to be self-controlled and not try to run ahead of you…”
I don’t know if praying that way made a difference in the length of my season of waiting, but I have to believe it made a difference in me because we are admonished throughout Scripture to think of others before ourselves.
Praise
Another part of this three-strand cord was to spend time in worship and praise for my King. It didn’t matter if the only time I could find was when I scrubbed toilets, drove the car, or walked on the treadmill. How could I expect God to sing a song over me if I wasn’t willing to make the effort to sing a song to Him? Was my time more precious than His?
I randomly chose a few songs from my playlist that I hope will greatly bless you:
1. Shane and Shane: I will wait for you.
2. Brandon Lake: Gratitude
3. People and Songs: Psalm 23
4. Red Rocks Worship: Be still
5. Red Rocks Worship: Breakthrough
6. Cain: Rise up (Lazarus)
If I didn’t feel like singing, I read and studied the Psalms. They are, after all, songs, poems, and prayers. What could be more perfect?!
My BreakThrough
This particular season of waiting on the Lord went on for a few years. I had well-meaning friends try to steer me back onto the same path they were on because they couldn’t comprehend God side-lining someone. Since we sat under the same teaching, they also believed that a time of rest meant to keep going, keep doing, and keep showing up. When I stopped doing those things in ways that were recognizable and familiar to them, they worried about my salvation.
I didn’t fault them. There were more than a few times my own doubts and insecurities crept in and got the best of me. In those times, I wondered if I misunderstood and unintentionally allowed this season to become my new normal. I didn’t always understand. But you better believe I clung to Jesus’ hem trusting that if I was off the path God had for me, the Holy Spirit would guide me back to where He needed me to be.
Then, out of the blue, it happened. I felt (in my spirit) a shift take place, and my season slowly changed! I still consider this new spring season to be fresh and new. I don’t know what lies ahead in my next season, but I am choosing to believe God has granted me a breakthrough in certain areas and a restoration in others.
Closing Thoughts
This post came about because I was reflecting (meditating) on the spiritual season process; how God uses them to grow us and to stretch our faith in Him. How we think we can shortcut our season for something better (we can’t). How often we spend the season battling our flesh and the fear of missing out if we don’t do something in the physical as “proof” we are just as spiritual and blessed as the next person.
To be honest, I was also whining to God that nobody likes to share about these dry, isolating seasons of waiting. If they did share, it seemed their testimony was, “God said wait, so I did. A week later, God honored my faithfulness and gave me my breakthrough.”
I couldn’t relate! Testimonies like that are so powerful, but they can also be soul-crushing when you have been waiting for years for your breakthrough.
Anyway, as I was meditating on this, I decided to put myself out there and share a few things I learned during my long season of waiting. I hope that you will find encouragement and inspiration through your own season of waiting so that you can, in turn, encourage and lift up someone else.