“I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope.” –Psalm 130:5

I don’t like to wait. There, I’ve said it. It’s a major fault, not a minor one. I’ve gotten in more trouble from not waiting than from virtually anything else in my life. That’s really sad when you consider how much in the Bible is written concerning the virtues and blessings that come from learning to wait upon the Lord.

I wonder if the same thing is true for a nation. We seem to be a country that doesn’t like to wait. We rush about, going somewhere, even if it’s wrong. We are a busy, impatient people, trampling over one another to get ahead and succeed, whatever success means to you or me.

What would it be like in a nation that has learned to wait upon the Lord? Perhaps we would pay less attention to the latest fad or news flash, and stay focused on the concern we heard about last week or last month. We would probably be a nation more interested in our history and in hearing stories from those who have lived some of that history. Stories of people who were making a real difference in life would take ascendance over the latest celebrity gossip or political scandal. We might even become a nation where contemplation isn’t frowned upon as being old fashioned.

Ultimately, a nation that has learned to wait upon the Lord is a nation that has renewed its hope. No longer rushing about in response to the latest poll or whim, there is a dependence upon the Word of God and eternal matters. A sense of the solid and the stable replaces the fleeting fancies of our current status. Hope is removed from being a campaign slogan to being a lifestyle that centers on the Word of God.

Prayer Points

• Ask the Lord to help you learn to wait on Him.
• Pray for the church in America to begin to model the stable lifestyle of waiting on the Lord.
• Pray for a movement of the Spirit that creates a dramatic cultural transformation in the United States, bringing about a nation that has learned to put its hope in the Word of God.

Prayer

Lord, it isn’t easy to wait. There are so many things to do. Forgive me for not waiting on You and running ahead to do those things that seemed good to me. Teach Your church to be a good model of those who do not rush into every trend or fashion but who have learned to wait upon You. Lord, show us how waiting on You is not inactivity but an active lifestyle of drawing near and of keeping our eyes upon You. May You so transform Your church that it flows over into the life of this nation. Slow us down, Lord. Teach us to wait on You, so that Your purposes and plans might be lived out in America.   

Taken from Desperate for Change: 40 Days of Prayer for America by Dave Butts (c) 2012 PrayerShop Publishing.