WAITING UPON THE LORD
"But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." (Isa. 40:31.)
"Waiting upon the Lord!" This suggests the beautiful thought of one's having plenty of time, being in no rush or hurry at all. Waiting necessitates one's having plenty of time, no other business to attend to, getting alone with God. It takes patience and forbearance to wait upon God; to await His time, His way, His method or plan. To be in a hurry would spoil the grace, the strength, the courage that comes from waiting upon the Lord.
A woman and her two sons, paid her father a visit, They had to get up at two o'clock in the morning and catch an early train in order to make connections at another city, if they would reach her father's home by night that day. She made the first train all right, but when she arrived in the city where she had to make connections for the train that would carry her to her father's, she was compelled to go across the city two miles in a hack to reach the other depot. The hack-team driver was tired, hence she missed her train two minutes. Rushing up to the ticket window, almost out of breath, she asked the agent "if the train going to was on time?" He replied, "The train has just pulled out." She wrung her hands and exclaimed, "Oh, isn't that awful! It is simply too bad that I missed that train! That old hack team, those old bony horses did not go fast enough! That driver was a poky man! Tell me, will I have to wait here six hours and a half? Six hours and a half before I can catch a train for my father's!" "Yes, you will have to wait six and a half hours." She Went over and took a seat and sat there crying and worrying and be-meaning the hack driver, In about one and a half hours the ticket agent rushed out and across the station to her exclaiming, "Oh, lady, you should rejoice, you should be very happy in missing that train, you saved your life and the life of your two children! That train was derailed and killed the engineer and fireman and flagman and thirteen passengers!" She clapped her hands and cried, "O God, how I thank Thee! I praise Thee for permitting me to miss that train!" How often we misjudge, misunderstand God's providential leadings.
Last December the author took very ill. For ten days and nights we waited much in God's presence, but could not pray through for healing. We cried in earnest, agonizing prayer by the hour, but the clouds were black; His face seemed heavily veiled; there was not one ray of light. The enemy sent us platoons of imps to tease and harass our soul. The devil whispered, "Now you have prayed through before, you have been healed before, what is the matter this time? Why cannot you get a grip upon God now? Why does He not hear your earnest cries?" These suggestions were awful to be whispered into the ear of a trusting soul during such a battle with the enemy, but we remembered that God said, "They that wait upon the Lord" -- not work, not run, not preach, not sing, but wait. It takes more grace to wait than it does to work. It takes more power to tarry than it does to go. Going is easy, going is luxury, but the command is to wait, wait, and we must patiently wait, we must wait until we hear from Heaven, we must wait until we get the mind of God, until we understand His will, His plans, until we know His commands, until He gives us the chart, map and compass.
One day while we were in earnest prayer, our soul in agony, we called upon our good wife to pray. While she was praying most earnestly for us, we looked up into His dear, sweet face with streaming eyes and crushed soul, and begged Him for a promise, begged Him to show us how to go on. The devil had been telling us for several days that we had taken sick to die, that our life's work was ended, that God had no further use for us, that our mission had been fulfilled. Some way, somehow, we could not believe it, and while looking up into His face, begging for light, begging for a promise and asking if it were His will that we should not die in that awful hour, in that dark hour, He gave us this precious promise (St. John 21:23): "Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die." We jumped to our feet, clapped our hands, and praised God aloud, Oh, the rushing tides of joy that filled and thrilled and electrified our being! We were carried out into mid ocean upon the billows of His mighty love, but there were lessons to learn, there were experiences to go through, certain lines of discipline that were essential to be given us.
Some way, somehow, even though so blessed, we did not get a grip upon Him for healing, so went to Christ Hospital in Cincinnati and were operated on. The next day after the operation the devil came in and said, "This is a short route to the cemetery. You are going to take blood poisoning and die." The nurses would come in every few moments and take our temperature. Finally we asked, "What is the matter? Why are you taking our temperature so often?" One answered, "The doctor fears blood poisoning." After she had gone out we cried to our God, "Why did you give us that beautiful promise. that bright promise in St. John 21:23, if we are going to die? Why did you not permit us to die at home with wife and babies? Why bring us down here to this hospital to die among strangers?" Then our soul stretched out for God and we began to earnestly wait upon God. Suddenly someone whispered, "God can give you another promise; God can give you light; God can show you that your mission is not accomplished, that your life work is not ended, that God has need of you in the great harvest-field."
Just then He gave us this precious promise (St. John 21:18): "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdest thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not." Here we raised a shout and praised God that we were to live to be an old man. You see if we had not waited upon God our soul would have sunk beneath the waters of discouragement. The devil would have beclouded our skies, placed a film over our vision, but we were waiting upon God, we were being led by the Holy Ghost. Oh, if we would only wait more upon God! Linger more in His presence! Have more blessed seasons of real, earnest prayer!
Too often we do not get anywhere in prayer, we quit before we begin, we get no strength, no courage, and the prayer life becomes dry and like stale bread. We do not enjoy it, we do not relish it, it is a drag, but the deep prayer life is an enjoyable life, It is a life that counts for God and lifts humanity; it is a life that brings thirty, sixty and one hundred fold. Men who pray do things for God, they are worth while, they are the men who bring things to pass.
We cannot accomplish anything for God without this deep prayer life. Waiting upon God in secret prayer prepares one for public proclamation of His truth; prepares one to sing with spirit; prepares one to pray in the Spirit; prepares one to teach under the inspiration of the Spirit. It makes home duties light, it makes work for God a delight, it oils up the machinery. There is no burden, no worry. There is rest, sweet rest, constant rest, abiding rest. No tossing, no sliding, no slipping up, but the abiding peace of God in the heart. Oh, why not wait upon God!
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