A reflection on Psalm 70:1–5 | November 2026
In hospital rooms, I often meet patients who have completed their tests but are still waiting for the results. Each time a physician enters, hope rises. When no answer comes, disappointment settles in. I recognize that impatience. After a job interview, I once hurried an innocent caller off the phone because I feared missing the call I was waiting for. Waiting was changing how I treated someone else.
David knew the urgency of waiting. “O LORD, make haste to help me!” he cries in Psalm 70:1. Yet before the psalm ends, he invites those who seek God to rejoice (verse 4). His trouble has not disappeared. His trust remains.
We can pray for healing, employment, or peace without pretending the delay does not hurt. God’s goodness is not measured by the speed of an answer, and our prayers are not transactions. In Jesus Christ—who suffered, died, and rose again—we meet a love that holds us even in uncertainty.
Last week, our congregation prepared Thanksgiving baskets for families in our community. Some may have wondered for months what this Thanksgiving would bring, hoping to be remembered. Meanwhile, those preparing the baskets carry prayers of their own. Their care says something powerful: hope can stay active while we wait.
This week, consider what you are waiting for – and how it shapes your attention to the people already beside you. Let anticipation deepen, not diminish, your patience and mercy.
We may still be waiting for an answer. But we need not wait to live our faith.
