Marriage Monday: Still in the Waiting

I’m in the waiting, still, and I don’t like it. Waiting is my least favorite contact sport. It may not sound like much of a sport to you, but waiting is a battle. If we don’t wait well, according to God’s instructions, we will get beat up. Waiting is a spiritual contact sport.

Still in the Waiting Room

My blog post from two weeks ago, In the Waiting Room, was written while my husband Bruce was undergoing surgery for a subdural hematoma (brain surgery) during COVID-19. So I was the only one in the waiting room that day.

Today’s post finds me still in the waiting room, only this time I’m home and he is back in the hospital, having undergone his second brain surgery for the same thing. We are up and down daily with good news/bad news.

Today it feels like mostly bad news.

Are you in a waiting room, still? Have you been waiting for something you pray for so hard, something you hope for against hope?

In marriage we often have to wait. What are you waiting for today?

• Healing for a health problem
• A spouse to return from deployment
• A family member’s COVID-19 test to come back
• Emotional healing and forgiveness
• Return of a wayward spouse
• Return to work and ability to pay bills

Whatever you are waiting for, I’m there with you. Here are some steps I’ve been taking in this waiting place. Maybe they will help you.

3 Things you Can Do in the Waiting

I love the way God works. This morning I picked up the devotional I’m reading, and the passage was perfect for this blog post.

Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today….The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.

Exodus 14:13-14 NIV

God gives us a sweet trifecta of practical, useful things to do in order to combat the fear that attacks us in the waiting. These three things will help curb the fear that rises in our souls when we imagine all the horrible outcomes that could occur.

Stand Firm

Taking a stand at a time of uncertainty gives me real relief from fear. What do I really believe? Am I willing to trust God’s word or not? When push comes to shove, am I willing to put a stake in the ground and declare my trust in God no matter what?

One of the things I have done every day in this saga is to take a stand for what I still believe to be true in God’s word by reading one of my favorite passages out loud.

I also take a stand against our enemy satan. His desire is for me to wallow in fear and worry and gnaw my nails until there’s nothing left. He especially wants me to keep quiet.

I know that Bruce, our kids, and I are sealed and protected by God, and our enemy cannot harm us. But he sure will try to get us to believe his lies that God can’t be trusted. God gives us authority over satan and his fallen angels and it’s in our rights as children of God to claim that authority.

Listen carefully: I have given you authority [that you now possess] to tread on serpents (satan) and scorpions (evil spirits), and [the ability to exercise authority] over all the power of the enemy (satan); and nothing will [in any way] harm you.

Luke 10:19 AMP

If you are not sure if you are sealed and protected by God, I hope you will read my resource, No Greater Love. It’s a free download, no obligations whatsoever. The whole Christian walk begins with just one small faith-filled prayer like the one I prayed 25 years ago. I hope and pray you will begin your walk today.

Pay Attention

I so often fail to pay attention, especially when things are in chaos. I run on auto-pilot and get totally disorganized. God invites us in this passage to stop and pay attention to our surroundings.

What is God showing you in these circumstances? His fingerprints are all over our situation now, but if I didn’t take the time to sit still and pay attention I might have missed the many tiny miracles He wants me to see. Those tiny miracles are so encouraging, they are what keeps me going.

Pay attention to Scripture. If you aren’t familiar with the Bible, and how to find verses on certain topics, visit Open Bible to get started. Another great resource is the YouVersion Bible app. This free app has tons of different Bible versions, along with audio recordings, and lots more.

Be Silent

Finally, be quiet, be still, and listen. Remember God gave you two ears and only one mouth. When you pray, do you ever give Him a chance to talk? Or does He wonder if He will ever get a word in edgewise?

Listening prayer is a big topic, but developing a rhythm of listening to God is so rewarding. He longs to speak to you in your thoughts, in your heart. A book that I found helpful is Secrets of the Secret Place (this is an affiliate link).

It’s very important to keep a journal, especially during the hard times. It has been so helpful to me to go back and read about what I saw and heard in the past. Those past lessons can encourage and equip me for new challenges ahead.

Many people groan about keeping a journal. A few notes jotted down is fine, it’s only for you to help you remember. Sometimes you will see a pattern or begin to understand a picture God is showing you when you compare the things you see and hear over time.

Waiting is my Least Favorite Contact Sport

Waiting is like a spiritual contact sport. Only God is the one taking the tackles for us. It’s important that we don’t fail to recognize the seriousness of the battle we are in. We’ve seen many states fail in taking COVID-19 seriously with disastrous results.

I started writing this post at 9 this morning. It’s now almost 6pm and I’m just finishing. There have been many calls from family and the doctor, many hours of texting and praying and also weeping. We don’t know Bruce’s prognosis at this point. He’s developed some worrying side effects today. But I will go back to the beginning of this post and through each of these three steps as often as necessary.

BECAUSE I BELIEVE.

Fear not… The Lord will fight for you.

Exodus 14:13-14 NIV

I will leave you with a well-known passage about spiritual warfare. Don’t forget, He is in the waiting. It’s ok, it’s going to be fine.

Now my beloved ones, I have saved these most important truths for last: Be supernaturally infused with strength through your life-union with the Lord Jesus. Stand victorious with the force of his explosive power flowing in and through you.

Put on God’s complete set of armor provided for us, so that you will be protected as you fight against the evil strategies of the accuser! Your hand-to-hand combat is not with human beings, but with the highest principalities and authorities operating in rebellion under the heavenly realms. For they are a powerful class of demon-gods and evil spirits that hold this dark world in bondage. Because of this, you must wear all the armor that God provides so you’re protected as you confront the slanderer, for you are destined for all things and will rise victorious.

But on truth as a belt to strengthen you to stand in triumph. Put on holiness as the protective armor that covers your heart. Stand on your feet alert, then you’ll always be ready to share the blessings of peace.

In every battle, take faith as your wrap-around shield, for it is able to extinguish the blazing arrows coming at you from the Evil One! Embrace the power of salvation’s full deliverance, like a helmet to protect your thoughts from lies. And take the mighty razor-sharp Spirit-sword of the spoken Word of God.

Pray passionately in the Spirit, as you constantly intercede with every form of prayer at all times. Pray the blessings of God upon all his believers. And pray also that God’s revelation would be released through me every time I preach the wonderful news of God’s kingdom with bold freedom at every opportunity. Even though I am chained as a prisoner, I am his ambassador.

Ephesians 6:10-20