Repenting of my sins, to You I came,
And in Your mercy, You forgave them all.
You washed me in the blood of Your dear Son,
Then clothed me with His robe of righteousness
And called me by Your name. I am Your child,
And You my Father are! I come to You
To humbly ask: Please grant the many longings of my heart,
Because I’ve learned apart from You, there’s nothing I can do.

These many years I’ve waited for You, Lord,
To answer the petitions that I bring.
I wonder what is taking You so long.
Is it my lack of faith? “Lord, I believe;
Help Thou mine unbelief.” Help me to see
Through eyes of faith that You are standing there,
Ready and waiting to move in Your perfect time and way.
Teach me to wait on You to hear and answer all my prayer.

While I am waiting, teach my heart to hope—
Expectantly to watch until You move.
For hope will not make me to be ashamed
When it is fixed on You, who cannot lie.
I do not doubt Your power to supply.
Though waiting long, I’ll patient linger still,
Continuing to lift my prayers before Your gracious throne,
For this I know: You’re waiting too, Your promise to fulfill.

To wait on You requires a sort of strength
I have not needed up until this time—
A courage found in trusting only You,
The fortitude to face uncertainty.
To see what lies ahead requires no faith,
For anyone can walk while there is light;
But only those with courage dare to tread where darkness falls,
So, Lord, I choose to bravely walk by faith and not by sight.

My many longings, Lord? No more. For now
I wait for only one—a deep desire
That cannot come from anyone but You.
My focus now is single, Father God;
One hope alone remains within my breast.
You’ve put me to the test—make me as gold,
Refined and purified, all free from dross,
That one day in the mirror Your dear image I’ll behold.

For far too long I’ve sounded my complaint.
You tell us we may cast on You our care,
And You take pleasure in both prayer and praise.
But conversation goes both ways. I fear
I’ve talked too much, too little lent my ear;
So settling down at last, I’ll quiet be.
I’m ready, Lord, to hear instruction from Your holy Word;
I’ll listen as Your still small voice speaks words of peace to me.

One lesson I have learned as yet I wait:
That I am not alone in this dark room.
For others all around are waiting too,
And many, losing hope, are growing faint.
They need someone to care, someone to pray,
To strengthen feeble knees in this long race;
So putting others first, I will a friend and helper be,
That others too may know firsthand of Your sustaining grace.

Still waiting, but not anxious for reply,
I’ve learned to wait in hope, expectantly.
My joy is full, though I am waiting still,
For that’s the key: “Be still, and know I’m God.”
I’m waiting for the Giver, not the gift.
It’s hard to think how much my faith has grown,
How sweet becomes the fellowship between my God and I—
I’ve finally learned to wait, dear Lord, on You, and You alone.

Copyright © 2018 Angela Umphers Rueger – All Rights Reserved

Scansion:
A L’Arora ~ a poem comprised of at least 4 8-line stanzas with a rhyme scheme of abcdefgf. There is no prescribed line length, only a set length for the stanzas.

Photo taken in New Market, Virginia, 2012