Wringing Our Hands

“Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him; do not fret.” Psalm 37:7

After an exhausting day there is nothing better than to climb in my bed and settle my mind into an anticipated good night’s sleep.  I never have trouble dozing off in the beginning of the night, but the challenge is staying sleep.  When I awake in the dark, my mind becomes filled with the quandaries of yesterday or the beckons of tomorrow.  On some occasions, anxiety and overwhelming responsibilities crowd my mind as I lay in the darkness, making rest an obscurity. 

Why do we question things regarding our lives when we are clearly commanded to enter into belief and faithfulness in God?  Why can’t we have as much faith in God meeting our needs as we do in the sunrise?  We don’t lie in bed at night and question whether the dawn will bring light so why do we question God’s arrival?  Why do we believe in the faithfulness of the creation but not in the Creator?  ‘Have you ever given orders to the morning, or shown the dawn its place….? Job 38:12.  We cannot rush a resolution in our circumstances any more than we can rush a sunrise.  God commands the timing of everything so why must we fret about anything?  He lays the lightning bolts upon a specific piece of ground, and commands each wave to break at His beckoning. 

I love the verse that David wrote as he struggled with the same fears and temptations just like each of us.  ‘Be at rest, once more, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you.’ Psalm 116:7.  Every one of us has things in our lives that seem to entangle our faith with our fear, requiring a constant need for the readjustment of our emotions.  Much like David, we must remind ourselves to once again be at peace, and patiently anticipate the faithfulness of God. He will rise and meet the needs of each challenge as faithfully as the sunrise meets the morning.  We will not question, ‘Will the Son rise?’ but rather ‘How beautiful will the Sonrise be?’

One of the most powerful praises to God I have ever read was in my grandmother’s journal after my grandfather passed away.  She wrote ‘I do not have to beg for healing Father, but patiently wait on it like the earth waits for spring.’

Rest, wait and fret no more!