How Long?

I am sick at heart.

How long, O LORD, until you restore me? Psalm 6:3

HOW VERY HARD it is to wait on God. Some of us have prayed earnestly (which, for some of us, means only two or three times) for him to work, and we think of ourselves as having persevered in prayer. But when we’ve prayed for months or years and see no visible signs of change, no tangible evidence of God at work, we can begin to lose hope. We wonder not only if heaven is closed to us, but if there really is anyone in heaven who is listening and able to act.

So David’s words in Psalm 6 help us. They give us words to express our frustration with what appears to be slowness on God’s part. But they also remind us to whom we’re praying. That’s what kept David praying for what seemed to him to be much too long. He knew that it is God’s essential nature to be merciful. He was praying to a God of unfailing love. He was praying to a God who hears, who answers, who rescues.

When we are sick at heart about the direction of or the difficulty in our child’s life, we can be sure that our God will restore us to a healthy confidence that he is at work. When we are worn out from sobbing over the pain in our child’s life, we can be sure that the Lord has heard our weeping. He has heard our pleas and will answer. It may not be today or tomorrow. In fact, God may not accomplish all the healing and restoration we long for in this lifetime. But we can be sure that the day will come when his work in our lives and in the lives of our children will be brought to completion. And in light of eternity, it won’t seem as if it took very long at all.

Lord, a part of me asks with the psalmist, “How long?” Sometimes it seems that you work so slowly. I am impatient for you to accomplish all you intend in ________’s life. But I am not hopeless. Even when I don’t see you working, I will believe you are. Even when it seems as if it’s taking too long, I will trust you to accomplish all you intend to accomplish and have faith that you will complete it right on time.