How to pray while you wait

When you are waiting, you can tell God exactly what you are waiting for, ask for it plainly, and ask for strength for the meantime. In the Bible, waiting on God is active. It means turning toward Him again and again while the answer has not come. It is not the same as pretending you do not care how things turn out.

What does waiting on God look like?

⁵I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, And in His word I do hope.
⁶My soul waits for the Lord More than those who watch for the morning— Yes, more than those who watch for the morning.
Psalm 130:5-6 (NKJV) · Read in context

Psalm 130 is a Song of Ascents that begins “Out of the depths”. The writer waits like a watchman on a city wall, watching the sky for the first light. A watchman knows the morning will come, and he still has to stay at his post through the dark hours. Read Psalm 130 to see what he is hoping for: mercy, and redemption for all Israel.

Can you wait and still feel like giving up?

¹³I would have lost heart, unless I had believed That I would see the goodness of the LORD In the land of the living.
¹⁴Wait on the LORD; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the LORD!
Psalm 27:13-14 (NKJV) · Read in context

David admits he would have lost heart without hope. The psalm then ends with a charge: wait, be of good courage, wait. Some readers hear David speaking to himself. Either way, notice that courage is part of waiting. It takes strength to keep hoping, and some days you will need to say it to yourself more than once.

Where was waiting hardest in the Bible?

²⁵The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, To the soul who seeks Him.
²⁶It is good that one should hope and wait quietly For the salvation of the LORD.
Lamentations 3:25-26 (NKJV) · Read in context

Lamentations was written after Babylon destroyed Jerusalem, in about 586 BC. The book does not name its writer; tradition links it to Jeremiah. The city lay in ruins. In the middle of the grief, the writer remembers that the LORD's mercies are new every morning and says it is good to hope and wait quietly. Read Lamentations 3:19-26. This hope is spoken from among the ruins.

How can you pray while you wait?

Name what you are waiting for, specifically: “the scan results on Thursday”.
Ask God for it plainly. You are allowed to want a particular answer.
Ask for what you need until then: sleep, patience with people, something useful to do with your hands.
Each morning, tell God you are still waiting. That is a prayer too.

For example: “Lord, I am still waiting to hear about the job. You know how much I want it. Give me courage today, and help me be kind to the people around me while I wait. Amen.” This is a prepared example. It does not promise a particular answer.

What if the answer is no?

The Bible includes prayers that were answered in ways the person did not ask for. Read 2 Corinthians 12:7-10, where Paul asks three times for something to be taken away. Waiting on God includes trusting Him with the answer, and you can still be honest with Him when it hurts.

If you would like help putting your waiting into words, write a prayer. If the waiting keeps you awake, read what to pray when you cannot sleep.