Waiting Time isn't Wasted Time

Waiting is suffering for a little while. That’s really what it is. And if I’m honest, I can’t fully explain why waiting can feel so debilitating—but I know for me, waiting has always required a thousand little deaths.

To wait well—to truly walk in patience and long-suffering—something in us has to die. Sometimes it’s our need for control. Sometimes it’s our timeline. Sometimes it’s our pride, fear, or the version of the story we wrote for ourselves. And the hard part? It’s usually a slow death, because letting go isn’t easy.

But that’s the thing about waiting: it’s never empty. God is always working. James 1:2–4 tells us that the testing of our faith produces perseverance so that we may be mature and complete. In every waiting season, something is being worked out of us while something is being worked into us.

A lot of times, we get so focused on what we’re waiting for that we never stop to ask what in us needs to change before it arrives. We don’t always consider how our character, our healing, or our obedience impacts what we’re asking God for.

But here’s the truth: waiting time is never wasted time. Romans 8:28–29 reminds us that all things are working together for our good and to conform us into the image of Christ. Every delay, every stretch, every second of the wait is shaping you to look more like Jesus.

And if becoming like Him is the goal… then maybe the wait is part of the gift.

What are you waiting on in this season? ...If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed. Habakkuk 2:3

patiently waiting,

Erika Michelle