3 Ways God Uses Seasons of Waiting in Our Later Years
Life seems to include quite a lot of waiting.
When we’re young, it seems like we’ll never grow up. We can’t wait to become teenagers so we can drive, then graduate, and get a job.
It seems like it takes the longest time to become an adult. Then, before we know it, we’re looking back at our younger years. Why were we in such a hurry?
Through the years we’ve lived so far, we’ve learned to trust God more. He keeps His promises, and even though sometimes we must wait, He never leaves us alone while we’re waiting.
The truth is, waiting is good for our souls.
This quote hits straight to the heart of waiting:
“He makes us wait. He keeps us on purpose in the dark. He makes us walk when we want to run, sit still when we want to walk, for He has things to do in our souls that we are not interested in.” Elisabeth Elliot, “Secure in the Everlasting Arms”
God is never late, and sometimes He makes us wait.
Waiting is preparation for His purposes.
We grow, and our hearts change during our waiting, and often our desires change. Hopefully, we surrender our desire to God’s will, whatever that may be. But how wonderful God is to give us the desires of our hearts, and He does enjoy giving us good things. Maybe not exactly what we asked for, but something better for us in every way.
Here are a few ways God uses a season of waiting in our later years:
1. We wait through seasons of suffering.
Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. - James 5:7
During the hot days of summer, we long for cooler weather. In the dead of winter, we yearn for spring. But we must wait for the season to come, and the same is true with the seasons of life. Waiting doesn’t change when we get older. It’s just another season.
The older we get, the more we suffer, it seems. At least, physically. And let’s face it, nobody wants to suffer.
Our bodies age, diseases set in, and serious illnesses may develop. The further we go through life, the more friends and family members have passed away before us. It can be heart-wrenching, to be honest.
These are supposed to be our golden years, and surely there are some beautiful things in this stage of life. Grandchildren are such sweet blessings and bring joy. But this stage of life is a sad season, as well.
We might discover unmet expectations about what it would be like at this age. Maybe things didn’t go the way we planned. Unfortunately, we may have experienced some things we tried desperately to avoid like betrayal, divorce, or the loss of someone we deeply loved in a tragic way.
God works in everything, even in suffering.
There is something for us to learn, or a place where we can grow through it. We learn compassion through our deep sorrows. We become more like Jesus in this way because suffering changes us. It humbles us and often draws us to our knees in prayer, which brings us into a deeper relationship with our Heavenly Father.
The good news for us, as Christians, is that we won’t suffer forever. Eventually, we will either feel better physically and emotionally and enjoy life again, or we will be completely healed and go to our heavenly home. It’s a win – win.
2. We patiently wait in hope.
We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. - Psalm 33:20
Waiting in hope can be tough in our later years.
Though we’re full of hope when a new grandbaby comes along, because we love to see new life, we hope that God will work powerfully in this new baby’s life. We wonder who the child will grow up to be, what they will do with their one precious life, and how God will use them?
Hopefully, we haven’t grown cynical in our older years, but continue to hope for good things that can only truly come from God.
As we’ve aged, more than likely we’ve seen God work miracles. And we’ve also seen tragedy. Maybe we’ve desperately prayed for a loved one to be healed from cancer and God took them home instead. It can be hard to hope sometimes after grieving such a loss.
But God is in control and has plans for good. He’s sovereign in every situation. He’s close when our hearts are broken and when we’re trudging through one of life’s valleys. He knows what we’re going through and is with us every step of the way.
Our hope is in God alone.
We trust that He has our best interests at heart and that His timing is perfect. We wait in hope because God keeps His promises. He is our help and our shield, and we know He will do what He knows is best.
Waiting in hope is a beautiful thing.
3. We eagerly wait for Jesus.
I always thank my God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in him you have been enriched in every way – with all kinds of speech and with all knowledge—God thus confirming our testimony about Christ among you. Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. - 1 Corinthians 1:4-7
The longer we live, the more we eagerly wait for Jesus.
We wait for Him to literally come back, but we also wait to see what He’ll do next in our personal lives. We know He will because He has in the past. We probably have some interesting stories we could (and should) share with the next generation about something incredible He’s done in our lives. He’s never let us down before, so why would He start now?
Our eagerness is a sign of our deep trust in God, shaped by what we’ve witnessed over the years of our lives.
The Holy Spirit is within us, changing us and making us more like Jesus every day we walk the earth in our flesh.
So, what in the world are we waiting for?
We’re not waiting for the world at all at this point in our lives; we’re waiting for Jesus to come back. Truly, our spirits groan to be in Heaven with our beloved Jesus. We yearn to be with Him for eternity.
One of the best things about being an older Christian is having the life experience we’ve attained through our struggles. We know where we started and how far God has brought us. We’re a living testimony of how powerfully God can work in a life. We were bathed in His mercy, grace, and forgiveness and given new life in Jesus Christ.
We were once broken, and now we’re blessed.
The wait was worth it. He always comes through for His children, no matter how old we are.
God is so good.
Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. - Psalm 27:14
Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/EmirMemedovski
Melinda has been honored to be a Selah Awards finalist for online articles and was a finalist for the 2023 Writer of the Year Award with Serious Writer, as well as a 2024 Semi-finalist for the ACFW Genesis Contest.
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Her book of articles and devotions is available here, and a short devotional about the Places God Takes Us here.
Originally published March 17, 2026.
