I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the Lord and put their trust in Him. Psalm 40:1-3
“The word patience is derived from the Latin word for suffering. It suggests the thought of being under the constraint of some power from which we would gladly be free. At first, we submit against our will. Experience teaches us that when it is vain to resist, patient endurance is our wisest course. In waiting on God, it is of infinite consequence that we not only submit, because we are compelled to, but because we lovingly and joyfully consent to be in the hands of our blessed Father.
Patience then becomes our highest blessedness and our highest grace. It honors God and gives Him time to have His way with us. It is the highest expression of our faith in His goodness and faithfulness. It brings the soul perfect rest in the assurance that God is carrying out His work. It is the token of our full consent that God should deal with us in such a way and time as He thinks best. True patience is the losing of our self-will in His perfect will.”
Andrew Murray in On Prayer (New Kensington: Whitaker House, 1998) 268.
Everyone, at various points in life, has the privilege of learning patience. Murray helps us see that perhaps God does His best work in these times. When we give God “time to have His way with us” through submission of our self-will to His perfect will, the result is of “infinite consequence” as it places us in a position to experience His grace, His unmerited favor and generosity in our lives.
Think of the implications of this. If we try to navigate life on our own strength, through our own power, we remain stuck in the mud and mire (to borrow an expression from David the psalmist). When we instead cry to Him and wait for His salvation and provision, in His time, He lifts us up, and we then have both a new song in our hearts and a story to tell of His faithfulness.
At this time I am praying for my parents. For weeks they have been doing the diligent work of giving away many of their possessions and preparing their home to sell so they can move to Florida to live near to my brother, David, and his wife, Joanna. It’s taken far longer than expected and been more work than they anticipated. I think many times they have felt like they are stuck in the mud and mire.
Can you relate? Do you feel stuck in the mud and mire? Something you are doing or waiting for is taking far longer than you ever dreamed. Don’t lose heart. God does His best work when we wait on Him. Give God time all the time He needs to work. Make that your “generosity” focus today or even this week or this month. As you wait patiently, He just may be writing a new hymn of praise for you to sing at some point in the future.