Psalm 27: Waiting for the Lord

Psalm 27:14 "Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!"

When is the last time you felt like you had to wait on the Lord? Perhaps he gave you a trial and it seemed like it lasted forever. Perhaps you are in a trial right now and you are waiting for God to deliver you. No matter the circumstance, the principle is this: oftentimes in the Christian walk, we must wait for the Lord amidst trials. David realized this as well, and he was willing to give us some words in Psalm 27 to help us along. Let us look at them this morning.

The first thing David says to do when we are waiting on the Lord is to recall God's privileges. Amidst an unnamed trial, David started penning Psalm 27 with the privileges that the Lord has blessed him with in mind. First, he recalled the confidence that he has in the Lord: "The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" (1). This adoration of God's character that David gives us (which sounds very similar to Romans 8:31) shows us that we have a certiain confidence in this live knowing that no one can be against us because God is for us. Secondly, David tells us to recall the presence of the Lord: "One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple" (4). Oh! What a beautiful verse! David knew the great priviledge of being with the Lord, and that being with him one day was even better than spending 1,000 days elsewhere (Ps. 84:10). Thirdly, David recalls the victory of the Lord. He knew that the Lord would hide and conceal him in his days of trouble (5) and ultimately that he would lift David's head up above all of his enemies (6). Admist great trial, David first and foremost recalled all that God had given him: confidence, presence, and victory.

The second thing David says to do when we are waiting on the Lord is to petition our problems to God. This is a common theme in the psalms of lament, which we have certainly seen in past devotions. David, amidst his distress, asks the Lord to hear him (7), not hide his face from him (9), not forsake him (9), teach him his ways (11), and triumph over his enemies (12). David knew that God was the only one that could help him amidst distress, so he called upon the Lord and asked him to deliver him, making his problems known to God. And amidst it all, he knew that "the Lord will take [him] in," (10) that is, that the Lord would be faithful to David's request.

The last thing David says to do when we are waiting on the Lord is to keep with perseverance. David once again recalls the character of God in order to give him motivation to persevere: "I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living!"1 David knew that God would eventually triumph over his enemies and deliver him, and someday see the goodness of the Lord fully. He knew that he would not pass away, but dwell in the land of the living because God was his deliverer. In conclusion to this, David commands these words: "Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!" In other words, because of the goodness of the Lord, we ought to wait for him as we remain strong and take heart, knowing that he will deliver us someday--not only from our trials, but from this entire world of sin. Amidst our trials and amidst this life in its entirety, we must persevere, not because of anything in us, but because of the goodness of the God who has promised to deliver us.

So, how have you been doing with your patience? Have you waited on the Lord to deliver you, or have you been impatient? I encourage you today: don't be impatient, but rather be long-suffering. Remember God's privileges that he has blessed you with, petition your problems to the Lord, and persevere in the meantime. Wait patiently for him, not only in silence, but in eager expectation that he will deliver you from your trial, and that he is eventually coming again to save us from trials forevermore.

1. For an awesome cross reference, see Job 19:25-27: "For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me!"