The Unseen Power of Waiting on the Lord

There was a time in my life when waiting felt like a burden. I could not understand why God asked me to be still, why things I prayed for seemed to go unanswered. I wanted to move forward, to take control of my circumstances, to forge my own path. Yet, time and time again, I was led into a season of waiting. And I fought it. With everything in me, I fought against it.

It wasn’t until I was in the thick of that waiting, feeling helpless and frustrated, that I began to see it — an unexpected, unseen power that God was cultivating within me. And slowly, the resistance I had to waiting turned into a revelation: there is strength in the pause. There is power in surrendering our timeline to God’s.

I was in my mid-twenties when I first felt this tug to wait. I had just completed college, eagerly searching for a job. My heart burned for a career that would ignite my passions and allow me to make a difference in the world. But months passed, and nothing happened. There were rejections. Silent phone calls. A sinking feeling in my chest that no matter how many times I prayed or worked tirelessly on my resume, the doors were not opening. I began to question everything.

Why was I being asked to wait? Why was it so hard?

The answer came in fragments — through quiet moments of prayer, and through the people around me. God’s plan was bigger than the job I wanted. He was shaping me, refining me in ways that I couldn’t see at the time. He was teaching me patience, trust, and dependence on Him, not my own abilities.

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I remember one particular evening, I was sitting at my kitchen table, scrolling through another rejection email, feeling discouraged. I whispered a simple prayer: “God, I don’t understand why this is taking so long. What do you want me to learn here?”

And in the stillness of that moment, I heard the faintest whisper in my heart: “Be still and know that I am God.”

It was as though the weight of that verse wrapped itself around me like a blanket, offering peace I couldn’t explain. I realized, I wasn’t waiting for nothing — I was waiting for something greater.

Waiting on the Lord doesn’t mean doing nothing. It’s not a passive process. It’s about surrendering our agenda to His and trusting that His timing is always perfect. And when we wait, He works in us. The strength He is building in our hearts is not visible in the moment, but it is powerful.

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In hindsight, I realized that God’s delay was not denial — it was protection. He was guiding me away from something that would have been a poor fit, and into a role where I would thrive and grow.

But the real change happened inside me. Waiting taught me to trust, to lean on God when I couldn’t see the way forward. It forced me to relinquish control, to accept that I don’t have to understand the plan, as long as I know the One who holds it.

Today, I look back on those seasons of waiting, and I am grateful. It was during that time of pause that I experienced the deepest growth in my faith. My patience was tested, yes — but it was in the waiting that I learned to rely on God more fully, to rest in His sovereignty, and to trust that He has a purpose for every delay.

Takeaway Thought

If you’re in a season of waiting, remember this: it’s not wasted time. God is using this moment to strengthen you, to refine your heart, and to prepare you for something greater than you can imagine. The unseen power of waiting is found in surrender, in trust, and in the quiet confidence that God’s timing is always perfect.

Don’t be afraid to rest in the waiting. God is working behind the scenes, building the strength you need for the journey ahead. The power of waiting is a gift — embrace it.