The Mirror of the Word and other works by C.E. White can be purchased on her website, cewhitebooks.com or on Amazon

“Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him.”

—Psalm 37:7

Resting and waiting patiently are not our natural posture. We more often act to acquire and pursue the things we want impatiently. We do everything we can to get that thing we think we can’t live without.

Three things can happen when pursue things without waiting on the Lord and his direction:

1. We don’t get the thing anyway, but now we’ve wasted time, energy, and other resources pursuing it, leading us to despair, frustration, overwhelm, and feelings of inadequacy. It’s the unrealized dream.
2. We get the thing, but it’s not the good we expected. It’s difficult, it creates new burdens we didn’t imagine, or it’s spoiled by something nearly the moment we get it. It’s the longed–for spouse that reveals a dark side only after the wedding. It’s the Ishmael that Abraham and Sarah got.
3. We get the thing, and it leads us away from the Lord. We placed it above him, and now it’s crushed out even the desire for him we had. It’s the deceitfulness of riches that choke out the Word in our lives (Matthew 13:22).

By resting in the Lord and waiting patiently for him, we free ourselves from the control these things have over us and the consequences of pursuing them against the Lord’s will. The waiting generates that godliness accompanied by contentment that is great gain (1 Timothy 6:6). 

But we do have to work at it. We must intentionally set our desires in the Lord’s hands and affirm that we trust him whether he provides or does not.

Waiting anxiously will lead us into unrest, strife, and anxiety.

But resting and waiting patiently in our good Father will bring us peace, hope, and joy.

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