Waiting on the Lord

One of the themes in the Isaiah verses of the Book of Mormon is the need to wait upon the Lord.  Nephi quoted these words: “Thou shalt know that I am the Lord; for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me” (1 Nephi 21:23).  Jacob in speaking to the people then quoted the same words in 2 Nephi 6:7.  In his subsequent commentary on the words of Isaiah, Jacob declared, “The people of the Lord shall not be ashamed. For the people of the Lord are they who wait for him; for they still wait for the coming of the Messiah” (2 Nephi 6:13).  Jacob also quoted this passage from Isaiah: “The isles shall wait upon me, and on mine arm shall they trust” (2 Nephi 8:5).  Nephi’s longer quotation of the Isaiah chapters included this similar declaration: “And I will wait upon the Lord, that hideth his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him” (2 Nephi 18:17).  These passages all testify of the need for us to wait patiently upon the Lord, to trust in His timing and sustaining hand.  Having spent eight long years traveling through a desolate wilderness, many months on a difficult journey by boat to the promised land, and decades dealing with rebellious brothers, it is no wonder that Nephi and Jacob quoted these passages and found comfort in Isaiah’s injunction to wait on the Lord.

                  Many other scriptures similarly invite us to wait upon the Lord for the blessings we seek.  The Psalmist declared, “Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord” (Psalm 27:14).  Another passage reads, “Those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth…. Wait on the Lord, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land” (Psalm 37:9, 34).  The Psalmist declared his commitment to doing this in a later psalm: “I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope. My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning” (Psalm 130:5-6).  Paul similarly encouraged the Thessalonians: “And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ” (2 Thessalonians 3:5).  Surely he knew something about waiting on the Lord after all the persecutions he suffered as a missionary for the word’s sake.  In our dispensation the Lord said to the Saints suffering in Zion: “Verily I say unto you my friends, fear not, let your hearts be comforted; yea, rejoice evermore, and in everything give thanks; Waiting patiently on the Lord, for your prayers have entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth, and are recorded with this seal and testament—the Lord hath sworn and decreed that they shall be granted” (Doctrine and Covenants 98:1-2).  The Lord promises that He does hear our prayers, that we must not fear but trust and rejoice and give thanks while we wait patiently on Him. 

               So how do we wait on the Lord?  Surely this kind of waiting is quite different than our normal usage of the term as we might use it to describe waiting passively for the doctor or for  traffic to clear up or for the weather to change.  I believe to “wait on the Lord” is a much more active kind of waiting; it does not mean doing nothing but rather means continuing to do all those things in our power to bring about the blessings we desire while trusting in His timing.  Perhaps the prophet Joseph described it best in this verse that came out of a time when he was waiting on the Lord in Liberty Jail: “Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed” (Doctrine and Covenants 123:17).  To wait on the Lord for certain blessings we seek from Him, we must strive to do all things in our power to bring His power into our lives—through earnest seeking in prayer, scriptures, the temple, the Sacrament, service, and many other ways.  Then we will have fulfilled this promise from Isaiah: “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint” (Isaiah 40:31).