Faithful Waiting: Trusting God in Silence
Summary
Today’s reflection centers on the tension of waiting—those seasons when prayers seem to echo in silence and God’s answers are not what we expect. Drawing from Habakkuk 2, the focus is on the “in-between” spaces of faith, where we have cried out to God, received an answer that may not make sense, and are now called to wait and watch. This waiting is not passive resignation but an active, expectant faith, much like a watchman on a tower—alert, engaged, and dependent on God’s timing.
The analogy of the drive-thru line captures the frustration and anxiety of waiting for something important, whether it’s healing, reconciliation, or clarity. In these moments, it’s tempting to fill the silence with activity or conversation, mistaking talk for true trust. Yet, as Habakkuk models, faith sometimes means being still, holding our post, and refusing to check out even when the outcome is unclear.
God’s response to Habakkuk is both sobering and hopeful. He instructs that the vision be written down, not just for Habakkuk but for all who wait on God’s promises. The righteous, God says, will live by faithfulness—not by understanding, not by control, but by a steady trust in God’s character and word. Even as God pronounces judgment on injustice, violence, and idolatry, He anchors hope in the promise that “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” This is a reminder that God’s justice and glory are advancing, even when evil seems to prevail.
In seasons of uncertainty, the call is to remain faithful: to keep watch, to remember and record God’s promises, to live by faith rather than sight, and to anchor hope in God’s ultimate victory. Like the disciples on Holy Saturday, we may sit in silence and confusion, but God is still at work. Waiting is not wasted; it is the ground where faith grows deep roots. Resurrection is coming, and God is moving, even when we cannot see it.
Key Takeaways
- Waiting on God is an act of faith, not passive resignation. Like Habakkuk on the watchtower, remaining present and expectant in seasons of silence is a spiritual discipline that shapes our dependence on God. It is in these “in-between” spaces that faith is refined and deepened, even when answers are delayed or unclear. [47:51]
- Talking about trusting God is not the same as actually trusting Him. There is a subtle danger in mistaking conversation or activity for genuine faith. True trust is demonstrated in our willingness to be still, to wait, and to hold fast to God’s promises when nothing seems to be happening. [54:00]
- God’s promises are meant to be remembered and shared, especially in seasons of waiting. Writing down what God has spoken helps us recall His faithfulness and keeps us anchored when circumstances challenge our hope. This practice guards against distortion and forgetfulness, ensuring we return to what God actually said, not just what we wish He had said. [55:49]
- Living by faith means refusing to lean on our own understanding, especially when God’s ways are mysterious or uncomfortable. The righteous are called to trust in God’s goodness and sovereignty, even when the world feels broken and justice seems far away. Faith is not the absence of questions, but the presence of trust in the midst of them. [57:06]
- God’s glory and justice are advancing, even when evil appears to have the upper hand. The promise that “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord” assures us that God’s purposes will prevail. Our hope is anchored not in immediate outcomes, but in the certainty of God’s ultimate victory and the resurrection life He brings. [01:01:27]
Youtube Chapters
[00:00] - Welcome
[20:03] - Offering and Prayer
[23:17] - Communion Invitation
[24:34] - Communion Prayer
[25:31] - Breaking Bread: Remembrance
[28:29] - The Cup: Christ’s Blood
[31:37] - Announcements and Body Life
[33:05] - Prayer-First Posture
[38:49] - Drive-Thru Waiting: A Parable
[41:19] - The Frustration of Waiting
[45:06] - Habakkuk’s Honest Lament
[47:51] - Watchtower Faith: Waiting on God
[49:27] - When Faith Means Being Still
[52:26] - Progress Illusion vs. Real Trust
[55:49] - God’s Answer: Write It Down
[57:06] - The Righteous Live by Faith
[01:00:14] - The Five Woes: God’s Justice
[01:01:27] - God’s Glory Will Prevail
[01:03:42] - Four Responses in Uncertainty
[01:05:52] - Where Are You Waiting?
[01:07:29] - Holy Saturday: Waiting in Silence
[01:10:43] - Closing Blessing
Study Guide
Small Group Bible Study Guide: Waiting in Faith (Habakkuk 2)
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### Bible Reading
- Habakkuk 2:1-4, 14, 20
(Key verses: “I will climb up to my watchtower and stand at my guard post. There I will wait to see what the Lord says and how he will answer my complaint… But the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God… For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea… But the Lord is in his holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before him.”)
- Romans 1:17
(“The righteous will live by faith.”)
- Proverbs 3:5
(“Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.”)
---
### Observation Questions
1. In Habakkuk 2:1, what does Habakkuk do after receiving an answer from God that he doesn’t understand? What is the significance of the “watchtower” in this context?
[[47:51]]
2. According to Habakkuk 2:2-3, why does God tell Habakkuk to write down the vision? What does this say about the timing of God’s promises?
[[55:49]]
3. What contrast does verse 4 make between the proud and the righteous? How is “faithfulness” described as the way the righteous live?
[[57:06]]
4. In the sermon, what modern analogy is used to describe the frustration of waiting, and how does it connect to the experience of waiting on God?
[[41:19]]
---
### Interpretation Questions
1. Why might God call us to wait in silence and uncertainty, rather than giving immediate answers or solutions? How does this shape our faith?
[[49:27]]
2. The sermon warns that “talking about trusting God is not the same as actually trusting Him.” What are some ways people might confuse activity or conversation for real faith?
[[54:00]]
3. Why is it important to “write down” or remember God’s promises, especially during seasons of waiting? How can forgetting or distorting what God has said affect our hope?
[[55:49]]
4. The promise in Habakkuk 2:14 says, “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord.” How does this promise anchor hope, even when evil seems to prevail?
[[01:01:27]]
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### Application Questions
1. Think about a situation in your life right now where you feel like you’re “stuck in the drive-thru line”—waiting for God to move or answer. What emotions come up for you in that space? How do you usually respond—by being still, or by trying to fill the silence with activity?
[[41:19]]
2. The sermon describes “watchtower faith” as being present, alert, and expectant while waiting. What would it look like for you to “hold your post” in a current season of uncertainty? Is there a specific way you can practice being still before God this week?
[[47:51]]
3. Have you ever found yourself talking about trusting God, but not actually trusting Him? What’s one area where you need to move from conversation to real trust?
[[54:00]]
4. The practice of writing down God’s promises was highlighted as a way to remember and stay anchored. Is there a promise from God—either from Scripture or something you sense He’s spoken to you—that you need to write down or revisit? How could you make this a regular habit?
[[55:49]]
5. When God’s ways don’t make sense or feel uncomfortable, how do you typically react? What would it look like to “live by faith” instead of leaning on your own understanding in that area?
[[57:06]] [[01:03:42]]
6. The sermon points out that God’s justice and glory are advancing, even when we can’t see it. How can you remind yourself of this truth when you feel discouraged by the brokenness in the world or in your own life?
[[01:01:27]]
7. The disciples experienced a “Holy Saturday”—a day of silence and confusion between the cross and the resurrection. Have you ever had a “Holy Saturday” season? How did you see God at work, even if it was only in hindsight?
[[01:09:33]]
---
Closing Prayer Suggestion:
Invite the group to spend a few moments in silence, asking God to help them wait in faith and to trust His timing, even when answers are delayed or unclear.
Devotional
Day 1: Waiting in Faithful Expectation
There are seasons in life when we find ourselves waiting—sometimes in silence, sometimes in confusion, and often with a longing for God to answer. Like Habakkuk, we may cry out with honest questions and deep hurts, wondering if God sees or cares about our struggles. Yet, waiting is not passive resignation; it is an act of faith, a choice to remain engaged, dependent, and expectant before God. In these moments, we are invited to take our place on the watchtower, to keep showing up, and to trust that God is working even when we cannot see it. The waiting may feel long and lonely, but it is a sacred space where faith is refined and hope is anchored. [47:51]
Habakkuk 2:1 (ESV)
I will take my stand at my watchpost and station myself on the tower, and look out to see what he will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaint.
Reflection: Where in your life are you waiting for God to move or speak, and how can you choose to remain engaged and expectant in that waiting rather than withdrawing or giving up?
Day 2: Living by Faith, Not by Sight
God’s answer to Habakkuk is clear: the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God. This is not about trusting in our own understanding or abilities, but about a deep, ongoing dependence on God’s promises, even when circumstances are confusing or painful. Faith is not just a feeling or a conversation—it is a way of life, marked by trust and obedience. When we are tempted to rely on ourselves or to despair in the face of injustice and uncertainty, God calls us back to a life of faith, reminding us that His timing and His ways are trustworthy, even when we cannot see the outcome. [55:49]
Habakkuk 2:2-4 (ESV)
And the Lord answered me: “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay. Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith.”
Reflection: What is one area where you are tempted to rely on your own understanding instead of trusting God, and what would it look like to live by faith in that area today?
Day 3: God’s Justice Will Prevail
In a world filled with injustice, violence, and brokenness, it can be easy to lose hope or to believe that evil will have the final word. Yet, God assures us that He sees all and that His justice will come in His time. The woes pronounced against greed, injustice, violence, shamelessness, and idolatry are reminders that God does not ignore wrongdoing. Even when it seems like those who do evil prosper, they are not beyond God’s reach. God’s justice is sure, and His promises are trustworthy, even if their fulfillment seems slow. [01:00:14]
Habakkuk 2:6-20 (ESV)
Shall not all these take up their taunt against him, with scoffing and riddles for him, and say, “Woe to him who heaps up what is not his own—for how long?—and loads himself with pledges!” Will not your debtors suddenly arise, and those awake who will make you tremble? Then you will be spoil for them. Because you have plundered many nations, all the remnant of the peoples shall plunder you, for the blood of man and violence to the earth, to cities and all who dwell in them. Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house, to set his nest on high, to be safe from the reach of harm! You have devised shame for your house by cutting off many peoples; you have forfeited your life. For the stone will cry out from the wall, and the beam from the woodwork respond. Woe to him who builds a town with blood and founds a city on iniquity! Behold, is it not from the Lord of hosts that peoples labor merely for fire, and nations weary themselves for nothing? For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Woe to him who makes his neighbors drink—you pour out your wrath and make them drunk, in order to gaze at their nakedness! You will have your fill of shame instead of glory. Drink, yourself, and show your uncircumcision! The cup in the Lord’s right hand will come around to you, and utter shame will come upon your glory! The violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you, as will the destruction of the beasts that terrified them, for the blood of man and violence to the earth, to cities and all who dwell in them. What profit is an idol when its maker has shaped it, a metal image, a teacher of lies? For its maker trusts in his own creation when he makes speechless idols! Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake; to a silent stone, Arise! Can this teach? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in it. But the Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him.”
Reflection: When you see injustice or evil around you, how can you anchor your hope in God’s promise that His justice will ultimately prevail?
Day 4: Trusting God Beyond Our Understanding
We live in a world that values control, quick answers, and self-reliance, but God calls us to trust Him with all our hearts, even when we do not understand. The temptation to lean on our own understanding is strong, especially in seasons of uncertainty or pain. Yet, true faith means surrendering our need to know and control, and instead, placing our confidence in God’s wisdom and goodness. In the waiting, in the silence, and in the unknown, we are invited to trust that God is at work, that He is good, and that He will fulfill His promises in His perfect time. [01:03:42]
Proverbs 3:5 (ESV)
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
Reflection: What is one situation where you are struggling to let go of control, and how can you practice trusting God with your whole heart in that area today?
Day 5: God Is Working in the Silence
There are times when God seems silent, when prayers go unanswered, and hope feels distant. Yet, the story of Holy Saturday reminds us that God is never absent, even in the silence. When we are stuck between the pain of Friday and the hope of Sunday, we can remember that God is still moving, often in ways we cannot see or understand. Waiting in faith does not mean God is inactive; it means He is working in the depths, preparing resurrection and new life. In these seasons, we are not forgotten. We are invited to wait with hope, knowing that God’s promises are sure and that His glory will fill the earth. [01:09:33]
Romans 8:24-25 (ESV)
For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
Reflection: When you feel God is silent or absent, how can you remind yourself that He is still working and choose to wait with hope for His resurrection power to be revealed?
Quotes
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