Psalm 40:1 – I waited patiently for the LORD; And He inclined to me, And heard my cry.

The 40th psalm begins with David’s joyful report to the congregation about his deliverance and an encouragement to them to trust the Lord. God did something wonderful for him after a long period of prayerful, patient waiting. The Hebrew translation “I waited patiently” is literally “waiting I waited.” The emphasis of this phrase is not really on patience, but on the fact that David waited solely on the Lord. The verb “to wait” expresses a confident trust or faith in the Lord. David knows that salvation comes only from the Almighty. The words “He inclined to me” present the image of the Creator of the universe, the King of heaven, stooping from His throne to save the helpless. This psalm is quoted in the Epistle to the Hebrews in a most remarkable way. In this psalm the One who celebrates in praise of the resurrection, the triumph and ascension is the Lord Jesus Himself. This is truly a messianic psalm. It reveals that the death of Christ was not a defeat at all. It was a great victory. When He says, “I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry,” He is referring to His cry from the cross.

Challenge:

Patience is not something we are comfortable with these days. We all want what we want when we want it. We do not like having to wait for anything. Our food must come fast. Our deliveries must come overnight. Our paychecks must get direct deposited so we can spend the funds immediately. I find that even when I go for a leisurely walk with my wife through the park, I am constantly looking at my watch to check my current pace and how much farther we have to go until we are done. What is my hurry? Everywhere around us we see our fleshly satisfactions being met quickly, totally devoid of any patience whatsoever. Challenge yourself this week to slow everything down in your life, take a deep breath and be still. Enjoying the journey is so much more important that getting to the finish line. Have you found that God is rarely in a hurry to do anything in your life? He consistently wants us to wait upon Him and trust in His perfect timing. God wants you to have a close relationship with Him. Relationships require time spent with others and that time cannot be rushed if it is going to be a meaningful relationship. God bless you.