I will never forget that day; April 3, 2017, in the pouring rain, when I clearly heard God telling me: “Not now Samantha, just…wait”. I felt it in every fiber of my body, and I knew that what I was hoping for was meant to be, but, not at that point in time. A peace came over me, and despite my disappointment, I knew that I was in the Savior’s hands; I would be all right, and I would wait for His plan for my life.

We all have been in a time of waiting. Waiting for a job opportunity to come through for us; for a college to accept us; for the person we love to tell us that they love us back. Waiting is something that which requires the utmost patience; we look for it every day, only hoping that when we wake up one morning, that will be the day that our waiting finally stops, and our desires are granted.

Sometimes what we’re waiting for comes when we need it to, and other times, it comes when we least expect it. There are times when it takes months, even years, to become reality. By that time many of us have grown weary and have given up waiting. I want to encourage you to never stop waiting. God forces us to wait on whatever it is we are looking for so that we learn to rely on his timing, have more faith in him, exude patience and contentment with what He has already blessed us with.

Psalm 27:14 tells us: “Wait for the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the Lord”. When we wait for the Lord, he will take us down the right road and the right path; He will lead us to the perfect job, perfect college, or the perfect partner for us to spend the rest of our lives with.

It may not always be what we want, but if we wait, and pray, we will always know that it was for our very best. I have noticed that it is in the moments when we are especially impatient and acting very independent, that God throws a situation in our way that forces us to stop and be completely vulnerable, with no control over what comes next.

He wants to show us that he is working for our good, but that we can’t depend on our own will; instead, solely on His. God may also make us wait because he sees that the path that we are running towards will lead to our destruction, and He wants to force us in the opposite direction.

Waiting is always hard, especially in those moments when we are completely lost, and we have no idea what God is going to do or what direction he is turning us towards. We see no clear path leading to our future, and anything can happen. This makes waiting especially scary because as humans, we always want to know what’s next, and which step to take. In these moments, it’s like we’re blindly stepping into the dark, day by day, with God as the only light to help us see along the way.

When God says wait, we need to listen. Rushing ahead of God can complicate things in our lives, and dig us into a deeper hole that we wanted. When He says wait, He is still answering our prayers and our desires, but just on His timing, and not ours. We can’t see it, but God must prepare everything accordingly so that when he opens the door, it is exactly what we needed.

Along the journey of waiting, it is inevitable that we will grow tired and frustrated. Jamie Grace helps us with a solution when she sings: “…I anxiously wait, As I hold on to love that won't ever let go, And in these times when my patience is tested, Won't you remind me that I'm not alone”.

It is in these keen moments of desperation that we need to clutch on to God’s unfailing hand and fight the struggle not to take matters into our own hands. C.H. Spurgeon has experienced the same impatience as Jamie Grace because he states that: “We shall not grow weary of waiting upon God, if we remember how long and how graciously He once waited for us”.

When we focus on Christ, and continually trust in him day by day, the waiting will not seem so long, and our faith in him will grow stronger in time. Always remember that God is never late. Louis Gossett, Jr. sums this up perfectly when he says: “The Lord may not come when you want Him, but he’s always going to be there on time”.

Whatever it is you are waiting on, just trust him, and keep praying. Never give up on God or on your faith, just because life doesn’t seem to be moving at the pace or direction you want it to. Walk with him, day by day, and don’t be afraid. God has promised that he will never leave us and forsake us (Hebrews 13:5), and what God promises, He does. If He is telling you to ‘wait’, it is only for your good, and if you really trust God, you should never be afraid of your future nor fear that he will leave you stranded.

If God is telling you to wait today, do not ignore His leading. His promises will soon be revealed, and it will be much better than you could ever have imagined. I have never heard anyone say that they regretted waiting on God, and you are not alone if God is making you wait. There is a quote that says: “Joseph waited 13 years, Abraham waited 26 years, Moses waited 40 years, Jesus waited 30 years; If God is making you wait, you’re in good company”. Always remember, nothing lasts forever, and eventually your day will come. For now, take one step at a time, and enjoy the current season you are in.