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Wait. Trust. Act.

Wait. Trust. Act.

Devotions, Blog

Three terms are excellent guides for applying biblical, Christian faith: wait, trust, and act. This is a trio of faith qualities.

Wait

There is a lot of waiting in the Scriptures.

Abraham had the promise of a son, but would have to wait for 25 years before Isaac was born. The nation of Israel waited 400 years before being rescued from Egypt’s slavery. Then they waited another 40 years while they wandered in the wilderness. Even Simeon (Luke 2:25-35) who “was waiting for the consolation of Israel” waited most of his life before seeing the promised Lord as a baby.

Christians today also wait on the Lord. We know that God is active in our day to day lives, but we do not always see his obvious actions. Our Lord’s actions more often are whispers rather than earthquakes, holy nudges rather than divine intervention. Like God’s people through the ages, we wait.

Trust

A connected truth and a result of faith is trust. By faith we trust that Jesus is our Savior. By faith we trust that Jesus is with us at all times. By faith we trust that God’s will is best. By faith we trust that the LORD will do as he promised. By faith we know that the LORD is with us, even if we do not often or obviously see his actions.

But times of waiting can be used by Satan to discourage trust of God. We are tempted to take the LORD for granted. We are tempted to speak about God and about Jesus, but not really be concerned about what the LORD’s grace and will is. Easily we focus on our way in the world rather than on Christ.

We combat those temptations as Simeon did: with a steadfast focus on God’s grace in Jesus. “Sovereign Lord,” he confessed upon seeing the Christ-child, “as you have promised,... my eyes have seen your salvation” (Luke 2:29,30).

Act

As we wait and trust, also we also act. For how many years did Simeon visit the Temple, acting in trust while he waited? So we act. By grace the LORD has made us his people and we want to live as God’s people. We will do good (Ephesians 2:10). Our righteous actions are part of the living sacrifice that Paul spoke about in Romans 12:1,2.

Wait. Trust. Act.

We are the LORD’s redeemed people, precious and loved by the Triune God. We are souls that have been hard-earned by Christ Jesus on the cross when he suffered the guilt and punishment that our sins deserved. We are God’s children created for good. So we

  • Wait: We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name (Psalm 33:20,21).
  • Trust: Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal (Isaiah 26:4).
  • Act: Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers (Galatians 6:9,10).

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Source: Growing in Jesus blog