Claiming God’s Promises in the Delays. There’s an important principle in Scripture that will open the door to the treasure houses of heaven for you once you learn and apply it. You especially need this principle during times of waiting because it will keep you steady and strong as the storms of adversity and waves of doubt arise.
What is this crucial precept? It’s the principle of claiming God’s promises to you—helping you persevere with hope as you wait for Him. Many people believe that waiting is passive … but that’s not what the Lord intended for us as believers. Yes, we are still in the sense that we take our hands off of our situations and allow the Father to work through our circumstances. But we’re also supposed to be active and growing spiritually—and we do so by resolutely taking hold of God’s Word. As we discover God’s will, we actively claim His promises and continue obeying Him step by step.
Think of it like this: Just as we work on our physical muscles in a gym, this time of waiting is an opportunity to develop our spiritual muscles—our faith, hope, and perseverance. We do so by making the deliberate decision to incorporate Scripture into our lives and to have faith the Father is working on our behalf. We eagerly take hold of the promises He’s given us in the Bible, vigorously set our hearts to believe Him, and energetically obey whenever He calls. As we make the active choice to trust His promises, our hope grows, and we learn to face our times of delay with expectant endurance.
Thankfully, because the sovereign God of the universe has never faltered in fulfilling His Word, we’re absolutely assured He will not fail us now. Our active resolve to trust Him will certainly lead to blessing. With this in mind, Hebrews 10:35-36 admonishes, “Do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised.” The Living Bible paraphrases it like this: “Do not let this happy trust in the Lord die away, no matter what happens.
Remember your reward! You need to keep on patiently doing God’s will if you want Him to do for you all that He has promised.” In other words, our perseverance is key to receiving the very best God’s planned for us. Therefore, we must endure, walking in His will—no matter what happens or how long it takes—so that we can know for certain we’ll receive the blessings He’s planned for us.
