Do you like to wait? Do you enjoy sitting at a doctor’s office waiting to be seen? How about going to the drive through at a fast food restaurant with a 35-car line and the food not cooking fast enough?

Worse yet is when you are standing at a toll booth with a line of cars of about 250 cars — at least it feels like it.

Nobody likes to wait. The fast-paced industry has created in all of us a sense of urgency to be in a hurry. To wait is to waste time and “time is money,” they say. There is one more place we need to go to and one more thing we must do, so hurry up!

Unfortunately, God has not changed his system. His “industry” and time frame is still the same as always — slow! Oh, I know I’m being facetious here — and not disrespectful at all. But let’s be honest, don’t we always feel like we are constantly waiting on God?

God seems to take a long time to answer our prayers, to give us the breakthrough, to change our kids, the economy and well, the next door neighbor. We are constantly asking God for something and he seems to take forever. The funny thing is, he’s never early and he’s never late — God is always on time.

In fact, he stands ready as he watches his own children, to bless them and keep them blessed. The Prophet Isaiah once said: Isaiah 30:18 (ESV) “Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the LORD is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.”

Notice two interesting words on this verse: the word is “wait.” First, God waits to be gracious to you and then at the end of the verse it says that you wait for him.

What is this that God has to wait to be gracious to you? He waits for the opportune time, when the moment where faith collides with his nature. When our faith intertwines with his grace and he sees that trust is the agenda of the day.

God waits on us to believe him for who he is and what he can and will do. To expect God is to believe God and with a total trust in his character, and in who he is grace and mercy are waiting to be dispersed into our situation.

King David also reminded us in Psalm 23:4 “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.”

As we wait to be blessed, God is waiting for faith and trust to be active without doubt or fear to bless us at a moment’s time. The word to wait is also the word to “linger” and to “long for.”

So how are you waiting for God? Long for him and He will show up in your life in amazing ways.