June 15, 2023 • Life for Leaders
Scripture — Psalm 130:5-7 (NRSV)
I wait for the LORD; my soul waits,
and in his word I hope;
my soul waits for the Lord
more than those who watch for the morning,
more than those who watch for the morning.
O Israel, hope in the LORD!
For with the LORD there is steadfast love,
and with him is great power to redeem.
Focus
As you wait for things at work, you are also waiting on the Lord. Allow the work-related experience of waiting to help you draw near to the Lord whose steadfast love for you will never fail.
Prelude
Work requires waiting. If you’re a farmer, you wait for your crop to grow and the rains to come. If you’re a teacher, you wait for signs that your students are learning. If you’re an entrepreneur, you wait as potential funders consider your proposal. If you’re a parent, you wait for children when they don’t show up on time. If you’re unemployed, you wait to hear whether you got the job or not. And so it goes . . . .
In all of our work-related waiting, we also wait on the Lord. We wait for God to guide us, deliver us, bless us, and answer our prayers. Sometimes we wait patiently. At other times we wait with great eagerness, like the nighttime guards who watch for sunrise. It’s interesting, is it not, that the psalm writer uses a workplace example to illustrate what it’s like to wait for the Lord.
As we wait in our work, we have the opportunity to grow closer to God, realizing just how much we lean on God’s goodness and grace in every part of life.
Pray
Gracious God, I’m waiting these days, waiting for progress at work, waiting to be affirmed for what I’ve done, waiting to know that what I hope for will happen. Sometimes it’s hard to wait, Lord, and this is one of those times. Throughout the day, I find myself wondering when I’ll find out what’s happening and what it will be.
As I wait for things at work, I’m aware that I’m also waiting on you. I need your help, Lord, your guidance, your blessing. Yes, I’m waiting for people to act. But I’m also waiting on you.
As I wait for you, I do so with hope. Though I’m eager for things to work out as I would like them to, I believe that you will work all things together for good, for your good, to be sure, and for my good as well. How glad I am that you hold me in your steadfast love. With you, Lord, there is great power to redeem. Amen.
Ponder Throughout the Day
As you wait for things at work, remember to wait for the Lord.
For Further Reflection
Read all of Psalm 130.
You may also wish to read Romans 8:18-39.
Banner image by Matthew Henry on Unsplash.
Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the High Calling archive, hosted by the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: Crying to God Out of the Depths.
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Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a Senior Strategist for Fuller’s Max De Pree Center for Leadership, where he focuses on the spiritual development and thriving of leaders. He is the principal writer of the daily devotional, Life for Leaders, and the founder of the De Pree Center’s Flourishing in the Third Third of Life Initiative. Previously, Mark was the Executive Director of the De Pree Center, the lead pastor of a church in Southern California, and the Senior Director of Laity Lodge in Texas. He has written eight books, dozens of articles, and over 2,500 devotions that help people discover the difference God makes in their daily life and leadership. With a Ph.D. in New Testament from Harvard, Mark teaches at Fuller Seminary, most recently in his D.Min. cohort on “Faith, Work, Economics, and Vocation.” Mark is married to Linda, a marriage and family counselor, spiritual director, and executive coach. Their two grown children are educators on the high school and college level.
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