How to Wait Well: Waiting for Hope

by Marilynn Chadwick

If we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience (Romans 8:25 ESV).

Are you waiting for something? Maybe it's the fulfillment of a dream or the resolution of a long-standing problem. You're waiting for a spouse, or a baby, or a wayward child to come home. Or you're anxiously awaiting a medical diagnosis, waiting for healing, waiting for hope. Whatever you're waiting for, I'm sure you'd agree that waiting is hard work.

When we wait, our hearts hope for something we can't see. There’s no earthly guarantee that what we hope for will ever come to pass. We risk disappointment. That’s why hope can be scary. It requires faith and courage. Many of us decide that hope is too dangerous, so we play it safe. Better to lower our expectations. Adjust to life without dreams. Be a good sport. The problem with playing it safe is that we close ourselves off to the life-giving beauty of hope and the rewards of patience.

The Bible encourages us to wait for hope “with patience” (Romans 8:25). Instead of patience, some translations use the word “endurance.” What does it mean to wait with endurance? We discover an interesting secret by looking at the Greek word for endure, hypomeno. It actually comes from two words: hypo or "under" and meno or "abide." Meno is the same word Jesus uses when he encourages us to abide in him (John 15:7). So hypomeno, or endure, is to "abide under" a time of trial as we wait for hope.

Bottom line? We learn to stand our ground as we abide under our circumstances and abide in Christ during our times of waiting. Abiding will help us hold onto hope as we wait with endurance.

Will you be able to stand your ground as you wait for hope? It's a muscular journey and you can't endure apart from Jesus. Resolve to abide in him daily. Rely on the Holy Spirit. Stay filled up with God's Word. Wait for hope with endurance.

Ponder this thought: Abiding in Jesus helps you endure as you wait for hope.