There is a difference between soul waiting and stop light waiting.  I came to that brilliant conclusion this morning. (I’m kidding about the brilliant part). I was looking up the meaning of the word “wait” in a Bible dictionary, and it said, “waiting involves the very essence of a person’s being – his soul”.   My very essence?  My soul?  Sounded a little dramatic, but then I realized it was talking about a specific kind of waiting.

There’s not usually a whole lot of my soul involved at stop lights and in grocery store lines. There may be a bit of my temper and my general impatience, but those situations are just life annoyances resulting in minor inconvenience.    Soul waiting is much, much harder.  Soul waiting is waiting for things that God knows everything about, but doesn’t seem to be in too much of a hurry to share with us.

Of course, He has reasons for that.  Reasons that may eventually become clear, but for now, remain quite obscure.  We do know that soul waiting requires a whole lot of trust.  Soul waiting asks us to look to God with hopeful expectation, even when we have no idea when, where or how He will end the wait. 

Soul waiting has its benefits, unlike the stop light waiting, which usually only results in an eventual green light and the ability to proceed with the trip.  Soul waiting can actually renew us. “Those that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.” Isaiah 40:31.  Soul waiting allows the Lord to give us things that wouldn’t have been possible without the wait. “Therefore, the Lord will wait that He may be gracious to you.” Isaiah 30:18.   Soul waiting allows us to rest – in God. “Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him.” Psalm 37:7. Soul waiting actually blesses us.  “Blessed are all those who wait for Him.”  Isaiah 30:18

And the very best part?  Knowing that God is right there in the wait with me – listening, protecting and providing.  And my soul – my very essence – can just settle in, and trust His ways, His plans, and His calendar.

“Therefore, I will look to the Lord.  I will wait for the God of my salvation.  My God will hear me.  Do not rejoice over me, my enemy.  When I fall, I will arise.  When I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me.”  Micah 7:7