STXWM Blog

Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. James 5:7-8

I can’t count how many times I have stood on the hilltop that overlooks our city in the mountains of SE Asia, my eyes taking in the red clay rooftops, rolling green mountains, and sprawling rice fields that we have called home the past ten years. Each time I am struck with two thoughts:

Oh, how I love this place the Lord has called us to.

and

How much longer, Lord, until we see the harvest?

In our early years of life here, I expected things to move slowly. We had much to learn—language, culture, how to exist and thrive in a new country. After a few years, though, when words came easier and things felt less foreign, I thought we would really see some forward movement for the Kingdom. When we didn’t, and our sowing wasn’t seeming to produce any fruit, I began to battle discouragement.

Lord, if you want these people to know You, and we want them to know You, why aren’t we seeing them come to faith? What is taking so long? Does it even matter that we’re here?

While it is right to work for and long for the harvest, if we fix our eyes on visible, measurable results, we run the risk of losing the joy of partnering with God to see His Kingdom come and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven. If we view our labor for the Lord as transactional—I do this, then I get that—we will find ourselves frustrated when we encounter long seasons of waiting for the harvest to come. We’ll be tempted to stop praying, stop sharing, stop believing that “we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” (Galatians 6:9)

We must remember that God is not pleased with productivity, but obedience.

If I labor for ten more years in these mountains and never see the harvest, but have walked in obedience to the Lord, that is enough. If I pray and sow and wait for the Kingdom to come in the lives of those I love who are far from Christ but never get to lead them to Him, I have still been faithful. It’s hard for us to comprehend that we plant and water but God makes things grow. (1 Cor. 3:7) And because of this, we might find that much of our time is not spent reaping a harvest, but waiting for it to come. That’s why it is imperative that we learn to be joyful, even when the harvest hasn’t come yet.

How do we find joy in the waiting? I’d like to share three ways I’ve found joy while waiting for the harvest we have worked and prayed for here the last ten years. 

1. Remember that co-laboring with God is a joyful privilege. 

It’s easy to get focused on the results (or lack thereof) and forget the incredible privilege it is to be counted worthy of being a co-laborer in God’s Kingdom. We GET to do this! It’s in God’s abundant kindness and mercy that He invites us to be a part of what He is doing in the world, not because of our own greatness, but to display His. This should bring us so much joy!

2. Remember that our value is not in what we produce, but in Whose we are.

Oftentimes when I am feeling discouraged about waiting for the harvest, it’s because I’ve wrapped my identity and worth up in what I can produce. We can experience joy in the waiting when we disconnect our value from productivity and remember Jesus loved us so much that “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8) We cannot earn His love—it’s ours in all its fullness already. Even Jesus at His baptism, before He ever did a single miracle, pleased the Father just because of who He was. (Matthew 3:17) 

3. Remember that nothing is wasted when working for the Lord.

The Lord has been so kind to us to give us little glimpses over the years of what He is doing, even as we wait for the harvest. Just as a farmer notices the signs of new life and growth in seasons of waiting, we can pay attention to the small changes and give God praise for them, cultivating joy in our hearts from a spirit of gratitude. When I get to have a spirit-ordained conversation with an unbelieving friend, when the Lord opens the door for the gospel to be shared with someone who has never heard, when a need is shared and I’m able to pray for them, when a believer is encouraged by our time together—all these things help me remember that God IS moving and working, even when we can’t fully see it, and as I give Him thanks for these glimpses of His Spirit at work, He renews my joy so I can press on.

“Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” 1 Corinthians 15:58

It takes audacious faith to believe that God is working when we are still waiting for the harvest. What are you waiting on God for? Join me in praying this prayer and be encouraged that there God has a purpose for every season, even seasons of waiting.

Eternal God, 

Who created times and seasons

yet is not bound by them,

as I find myself in a season

of waiting 

I cannot comprehend

how Your ways and Your plans

are always in motion,

yet to my impatient heart 

You seem to be still and silent,

unmoving and unresponsive. 

Lord, give me faith to trust

that even in my waiting, 

You are ever working. 

It’s a mystery to me—

the ebb and flow of Your Spirit,

at work within and around me,

sometimes quiet and steady,

sometimes crashing like a wave. 

Your ways are beyond my 

comprehension,

yet my finite mind longs to 

understand.

In my eagerness to see You 

move around me,

give me grace to sense You 

move within me.

As I wait,

assure me that

Your plans have not paused,

and that my purpose is not

on the other side of the silence,

but it’s here 

in the waiting

that You are doing something

that can only take shape 

in my forced stillness 

and my slow surrender.

Gentle Jesus,

meet me here in my waiting

and teach me how to wait well,

for You are no stranger to it,

yet You walked on this earth 

with a steadiness of heart

and a posture of peace.

And You wait even now

for Your glorious return— 

a Groom longing for 

His bride— 

so if You are familiar with waiting, 

perhaps You can only make me like You

in mine. 

When I grow restless

and start to doubt, 

whisper Your promises

to my heart—

that You are with me,

that You will never forsake me,

that You are working all things

together for my good. 

When I grow weary 

and start to despair,

remind me of Your 

faithfulness—

that You are my Shepherd,

that You are leading me,

that goodness and mercy

will follow me forever. 

So as I wait for You 

and for Your hand to move,

may You find me faithful

to continue trusting, 

to continue working,

to continue sowing 

into the ground You’ve placed me on,

knowing that at just the right time—

Your time, not mine—

the harvest will come 

because my waiting 

is the soil where

Your faithfulness grows.

Amen

Prayer from @liturgiesforalifeabroad

by Heather F.