Why Is God So Slow?

While You’re Waiting, God Is Working

Scripture References

Primary text

• Isaiah 64:4

Other references

• John 2
• Genesis 4:4
• 2 Peter 3:9

Overview

Waiting tests our faith, especially when we know God could act but hasn’t yet. Drawing on Jesus’ own thirty-year wait before ministry, Pastor Craig reminded us that delay does not equal inactivity.

“While you’re waiting, God is working.”
God may be preparing the situation, shaping us, or planning something altogether different for His glory. Our task is to trust His perfect timing, refuse to waste the waiting, and keep serving Him even when He seems silent.

Main Points

Waiting is universally hard—even for Jesus

• Everyday examples: traffic, slow grocery lines, unanswered texts.
• Jesus, though fully God, waited 30 years before beginning His public ministry.
• In John 2 at the wedding in Cana, He told Mary, “My time has not yet come.” Four times in John’s Gospel Jesus says His hour had not arrived, showing His submission to the Father’s timetable.

God is working while we wait (Isaiah 64:4)

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard … a God who works for those who wait for Him.”

• God’s activity is often invisible but constant.
• Question to hold: What is God doing while I’m waiting?

Two common ways God works in the delay

1. He’s working on “it” — the circumstance isn’t ready.
   • Story: Before Craig met Amy, God orchestrated her return to faith through a friend’s witness while Craig was praying for a future spouse he hadn’t yet met.
2. He’s working on “you” — we’re not ready.
   • Sometimes God withholds resources or influence to grow character and faithfulness first.
   • Example of Saul/Paul: years of tent-making before open doors for preaching.

Don’t waste the waiting—wait actively

• Biblical waiting is not passive. Like a good restaurant “waiter,” serve while you wait.
• Craig’s Saturday “date nights with God” in college: near-beer, cassette teachings on marriage, journaling, and writing future love notes showed purposeful growth.

History proves God’s perfect timing (Genesis 4:4)

• 400 “silent years” between Malachi and John the Baptist felt like divine absence.
• During that period God set the stage:
  1. Socratic method encouraged questions—Jesus arrived as the Answer.
  2. Old Testament translated into Greek—Scripture became accessible.
  3. Alexander the Great’s conquests & Roman roads—common language and highways for gospel spread.
• “When the right time came, God sent His Son” (Genesis 4:4).

Trust even when God’s answer is “no” or “not yet”

• God’s ways and thoughts are higher (2 Peter 3:9 referenced later).
• Repeated declaration: “Father, glorify Your name”—whether He answers the request, delays, or declines.
• Personal illustration: ongoing skin condition driving Craig to deeper prayer.

Salvation call—God may be waiting for you

• 2 Peter 3:9: God’s “slowness” is patience, giving people time to repent.
• Invitation to surrender to Jesus, receive forgiveness, and begin new life.

Key Truths

• God’s apparent slowness is never inactivity; He is always working for those who wait in faith.
• Delay may indicate that the circumstance isn’t prepared or that God is preparing us.
• Active, faithful waiting cultivates character and intimacy with God.
• History’s “silent” periods reveal that God sets intricate stages before dramatic breakthroughs.
• Ultimate trust says, “Father, glorify Your name,” regardless of outcome.

Response

• Surrender your timetable; ask God to align your desires with His purpose.
• Serve others and pursue spiritual growth during seasons of delay.
• Identify one area where you’ve grown impatient and re-commit it to prayer and active trust.
• Replace complaints with the confession: “While I’m waiting, God is working.”
• Share your story of waiting and God’s faithfulness to encourage someone else.

Closing

Waiting hurts, but it isn’t hopeless. Jesus Himself waited, submitted, and at the precise moment fulfilled His mission. The same Father orchestrates our lives. Believe He can, believe He will—and even if He doesn’t, remain steadfast.

“Father, glorify Your name.”

Prayer

The pastor led two prayers: one for believers in a season of waiting—asking God for healing, provision, and endurance—and a salvation prayer inviting newcomers to receive Christ’s forgiveness, be filled with the Spirit, and live wholly for Him.