Waiting Is the Hardest Part

James stayed in Jerusalem despite having many reasons to leave. Christians were persecuted there, and the city leaders had murdered his older brother. On top of that, Jesus had prophesied the city’s destruction. That alone would convince most people to leave. Yet James stayed. He felt called to preach to the Jews and pray for their salvation for as long as it took (Galatians 2:9-10), even if it meant living in a doomed city that had killed his brother.

James is a prime example of a common Biblical theme: waiting on the Lord. As his ministry demonstrates, waiting on the Lord isn’t passive but active. It’s a lot like farming (James 5:7-8). Farmers work incredibly hard, but ultimately, they can’t make crops grow. They must wait for God to provide the growth before the harvest can begin.

Waiting for God is difficult. It can take years, decades, or even a lifetime for the harvest we worked and prayed for to arrive. James encourages us to remember people like Job, who lost everything, yet remained faithful to the Lord and was eventually rewarded both in this life and the next (James 5:10-11). God is compassionate, merciful, and desires good things for us. He rewards faithfulness, even when nothing seems to be happening.

So what do we do while we wait? Keep serving the Lord, seeking Him, praying, and building godly character. The most important thing to God is that our hearts are in the right place (James 5:12; Matthew 5:37). Do your part faithfully, and trust God to prepare the harvest in His perfect timing.

Watch the full sermon here.